Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love
by Assassin master ezio 91
Summary: Xingcai finds herself in a bad situation when her mother forces her to marry the winner of a tournament held to choose her husband. Desperate she turns to her new friend, Liu Shan, together they flee back to Liu Bei and plead with him to help them. Liu Bei takes a stand and soon the rejected suitor gathers a large army to reclaim her. Will true love prevail, or will they all fail.
1. Chance Meeting

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 1 of a new Dynasty Warriors story, hope you enjoy it.

Main Pairing: Liu Shan/Xingcai

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Chance Meeting**

"I don't get it, why are you being so stubborn?!" The large man asked, the woman standing opposite him on the other side of the table shook her head, "I'm stubborn, you have no right to say something like that, dear husband."

The man glowered at his wife and grunted. The man was a giant in height and bulky with muscle, he had short spiky brown hair and a short thick brown beard and moustache and brown eyes. He was clad in armour with shades of green and gold as the predominant colours, although there were highlights of red and black on the chest plate and a gold circlet. The armour left his arms and his right shoulder bare, save for a single gold and black armoured band around his right wrist and a red cloth wound just below his left elbow. His wife was much shorter than him, coming only level with his chest, she had long black hair and black eyes and was clad in a dark green robe of fine silk.

"You have some nerve to accuse me of being stubborn Zhang Fei." The woman stated to her husband, "After all, we all know that you are the most stubborn man in the land."

Zhang Fei groaned and shook his head.

"Never mind that, we're talking about something important here." He replied, "I don't get why you can't accept my choice."

His wife glared at her husband and replied haughtily.

"You couldn't care less about Xingcai, as far as you're concerned she could marry some common swine." She shook her head, "Our daughter is a woman of high class, she deserves to marry the best, a man of high blood with either good fighting skills or people who serve him with great skills."

"Xingcai should have a say in this, don't you get it!" Zhang Fei yelled, "I want our daughter to be happy, we should let her marry whoever she wants, whoever makes her happy!"

With that the arguing continued.

Xingcai sighed and shook her head; she was getting sick of this.

'_Just once I'd like my parents to spend one whole day not arguing.'_ She thought to herself.

Xingcai was a beautiful young woman in her late teens; she had shoulder length raven black hair, parted on the right and black eyes. She was clad in a green and silver armoured dress with gold plates. The skirt of the dress reached down to just above her knees and had a slit up each side, almost up to the waist. She wore white armoured gloves, a pair of black stockings which reached midway up her thighs and silver knee high armoured boots finished the outfit but she wasn't wearing them at the moment. As part of the official government the Emperor of Han, Emperor Ling, had decreed that each regional lord was to come to the Capital of Luo Yang, or be represented by some of their retainers. The reason for the visit was to deliver reports of the condition and income for each province. Zhang Fei was a retainer and sworn brother of Liu Bei who was the Regional Lord of Xu Province. He was accompanying Liu Bei's representative, Xu Shu, on the trip. Ever since her sixteenth birthday her parents had started arguing about Xingcai's future and, more prominently, marriage. Her father always doted on her, contrary to his fierce appearance, and was happy for to marry whenever she was ready and had a suitor she loved. Her mother on the other disapproved of many things, the fact her father taught her how to fight, the fact Xingcai enjoyed battle, and Zhang Fei's stance on Xingcai's future. She felt Xingcai should marry someone of high blood, with great position and prominence. She groaned and stood up, her parents were still arguing and she couldn't take it anymore. She pulled on her stockings and boots and left the house, desperate to escape the noise.

Out on the streets of Luo Yang she was able to breathe freely.

'_Honestly, why is mother being so unfair?' _She thought bitterly, _'At least father is letting me marry who I want, and when I'm ready, she's trying to force me to marry someone, simply because she wants money.'_

It was true that her mother's favourite choices for Xingcai's husband were all rich. Deciding to put all thoughts of her family's arguments out of her mind she continued down the street, finally she reached a small pavilion. She leaned against the railing as she gazed over the lake. She was so lost in her thoughts she didn't hear the footsteps until the person was right behind her, she spun around.

"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

The figure was a young man around her age; he had short black hair and brown eyes. He was dressed in dark green robes with white fur edging and floral and dragon designs on them. He also wore brown pointed boots, and a yellow headpiece.

"Who are you?" She asked cautiously; he smiled serenely, "I am Liu Shan, son of Liu Bei."

It was then Xingcai recognized him.

"Wait, I remember, of course, I've seen you at some of the feasts back home." She replied, bowing. He shook his head, "Please, there is no need for formalities. I remember you too; it's Xingcai, isn't it?"

She nodded, he smiled again but then he frowned as he noticed her preoccupation.

"Are you okay?" He asked, "You seem worried."

Xingcai sighed and shrugged.

"It's my parents." Liu Shan looked surprised, "Master Zhang Fei and his wife, what's going on?"

Xingcai smiled at his concern and, feeling strangely drawn to him and feeling she could trust him, she opened up and told him about her problems. By the time she was done he was shocked.

"Unbelievable. Xingcai…I may be speaking out of place here, but your father is right. You shouldn't be forced into anything." He stated, "You should be free to make your own choice…If you have any trouble, please, don't hesitate to talk to me. I'll gladly help any way I can."

She smiled at him.

"Thank you Lord Liu Shan." She replied, "I am truly grateful…It's getting late, I should head home, my parents should be asleep by now."

"Farewell Xingcai, I will be returning to my dwelling tomorrow." He replied and they parted company.

As she returned home she could hear that her parents were still surprisingly up. What's more the arguing was still continuing and someone else was present. She stopped and peeked into the room through the ajar curtain. Standing next to her mother, and obvious on her side of the argument, was a tall man with black hair, a short black beard and moustache and black eyes. He was dressed in blue and silver armour with gold plates and a golden circlet with blue ear guards.

'_Uncle Xiahou Yuan,'_ She thought surprised, _'Why has mother called him? I can't take this anymore, I'll just go to bed, I'm exhausted.'_

Xiahou Yuan, her mother's brother and a retainer for the regional lord of Yan, Cao-Cao. She couldn't fathom why her mother had called him into the argument. Deciding that she would ask her father about it tomorrow Xingcai removed her boots, stockings and armour before pulling on the green silk robe she wore to bed. After climbing into to be she sighed as she heard her father's raised voice again.

'_Why can't they just see father's right? It would make things so much easier and stop all these arguments.'_

Tuning out the sounds of the argument she drifted off to sleep, hoping that by tomorrow, things would have improved and that she would get some answers.

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End of chapter, what do you think? Hope you enjoyed it. Read and review please.


	2. A Shocking Revelation

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 2 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it. Well, I wouldn't say it's non-depressing, especially given how events are going to unfold, but that's not the only theme in it :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**A Shocking Revelation**

After waking up Xingcai got out of bed and stretched. She listened carefully and noted that it was quiet; for once the arguing hadn't carried on into the morning. She quickly got dressed and hurried through to the main room. To her surprise her mother was nowhere in sight, her father was sitting at the table. He was leaning back in his seat, occasionally groaning. Xingcai approached him nervously and then covered her nose at the smell.

'_Oh god, he's drunk again.' _She thought, _'Great, just when I needed to talk to him…Well, maybe this was from last night.'_

Knowing that her father could only manage unintelligible speech while drunk she sincerely hoped he was just nursing a hangover.

"Father?" She asked cautiously, he opened his eyes and smiled, "Hey, morning." He replied, proving her hopes right, "Where's mother?"

Zhang Fei grumbled slightly before replied.

"She's away with Xiahou Yuan," He replied, "They're…They're going to see the Emperor."

This surprised Xingcai, what could her mother want to talk to the Emperor about. She decided to go and see if she could catch her mother returning from the Imperial Palace and so, after bidding her father farewell she left the dwelling and headed towards the palace. As she walked she noticed a few officials and retainers for various Regional Lords all walking together talking in hushed whispers.

She soon found out why they were whispering when one of them approached her. He was a tall man with long black hair which he tied back and black eyes. He was clean shaven and dressed in rather elegant clothes, a pair of blue pants, a white jacket with blue and gold designs and armour plates and black knee high armoured boots.

"Well, well," He declared, "If it isn't the lovely Xingcai."

She glared at him, "Cao Pi." She remarked bitterly.

"Come now, that isn't very polite." He remarked sarcastically.

Cao Pi was Cao-Cao's son and was well known for his arrogant attitude which made him seem even more ruthless that his infamous father.

"After all," He continued. "Your mother was kind enough to give a lot of men the chance they've been dying for."

She immediately rounded on him.

"Excuse me, what is that supposed to mean?!" She snapped, he laughed, "She went with Xiahou Yuan and spoke to my father, together they spoke to the Emperor and he's agreed to hold a fighting tournament, the richer entrants can have their retainers represent them of course."

Xingcai shook her head.

"What does this have to do with me?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He stated rhetorically, "The prize at the end of the tournament…is you."

"WHAT?!"

"The winner gets to be your husband."

Suddenly it was all falling into place, the reason her mother went to the Emperor. She was determined to get her way with the decision for Xingcai's husband, by using the Emperor's seal of approval as a means to make her decision impossible to challenge. Without even sparing Cao Pi another glance Xingcai ran to the Imperial Palace.

When she arrived she saw her mother leaving the palace, she had never seen her look so smug.

"Mother!" She yelled out as she approached, her mother turned and smiled, "Xingcai, there you are, I…"

"How could you!?" Xingcai yelled surprising her. "How could I what?"

"Cao Pi told me about this…tournament!" Her mother recovered her composure and smiled, "Yes, he's right; I've finally decided to get the Emperor's approval…Now we can get you a proper husband."

"You idiot!" Xingcai yelled, "Xingcai, how dare you speak to me that way, I'm doing this for you…"

"No you're not, you're doing it for yourself…If you were doing it for my benefit, you'd let me choose my husband!"

To her surprise her mother shook her head and glared.

"You've let your father influence you too much…That does it, this tournament is happening and you will marry the victor."

"Never." She snapped back but her mother stepped towards her, "You _will_ marry the victor, the Emperor decrees it. If you refuse, you go against the Emperor."

Xingcai growled at this but had no reply.

"In light of your upcoming marriage, it's time for some changes." Her mother stated, "It's time you behaved properly, no more sword fights or battles, you will behave like a proper woman."

Xingcai couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop trying to change, I'm happy with who I am, you have no right too…!"

"I'm your mother, I have every right!" Her mother snapped back, "It's time you dressed properly too, something like that," She gestured to Xingcai's armoured dress, "Isn't suitable for a woman."

Without another word her mother walked off back home leaving Xingcai alone, realizing that, no matter what she did, her mother had won.

Meanwhile, one of the regional lords had heard the news about the tournament and was quite excited about it. He had heard about Xingcai's beauty and had even seen her during one of the Capital visits; he was excited about the prospect of that beauty being his. The regional lord was a man of medium height with black eyes, short black hair and a long messy black beard, he is quite overweight and was dressed in lavish purple robes with gold armour plates and a large gold headdress, his name was Dong Zhuo.

"Finally, that beauty can be mine…But first I need to win that tournament." He mused to himself, "How can I be certain of victory, I can't let anyone else have her."

"My lord." One of his retainers spoke up, it was his advisor; Li Ru, "Why not consult your friend, the oracle, Zhang Jiao."

"Of course, why didn't I think of it sooner," Dong Zhuo replied with an evil chuckle, "Send for Zhang Jiao."

Soon the man himself arrived. Zhang Jiao was a tall individual with long brown dreadlocks of hair, a bald crown, medium length brown beard and brown eyes. He was clad in splendid robes of yellow silk and wore red beaded bracelets on each wrist. He approached Dong Zhuo and bowed low.

"You sent for me, my lord?" He asked, Dong Zhuo nodded, "Yes, I have heard I have a chance to win the heart of the lovely Xingcai. I have to win a tournament which is being held soon. I was wondering if you might advise me of a way I can be certain of victory."

Zhang Jiao pondered for a moment and then smiled.

"This is a grand omen for you, Master Dong Zhuo." He declared, "Yes I see it…Victory will be yours, you need but use one man."

"One man, who is he?"

"The man is within your army, strength of an entire army, renowned for his skills in battle, riding a horse with hair like fire!"

Dong Zhuo's malicious smirk grew wider.

"Of course, now I see, I will be unbeatable in that tournament…Thanks to him…Lu Bu"

Dong Zhuo began laughing as he sent for Lu Bu to inform him of the plan.

Xingcai meanwhile was standing at the sheltered pavilion again. She sighed sadly as she looked down at the water.

'_How did it come to this?'_ She thought sadly.

She heard the footsteps this time, even recognized them and saw his reflection in the water.

"Hello Lord Liu Shan." She greeted as he stopped next to her.

"Xingcai, what's wrong?" He asked, noticing her depression. Xingcai shook her head, "It's my mother…"

She then told him everything about what had happened.

Liu Shan shook his head, "This isn't right, she can't just do this…It isn't fair on you."

"Try telling her that." Xingcai replied darkly, Liu Shan sighed and then thought for a moment, "Listen, there's nothing we can do to stop the tournament but you never know, there might be a real hero who fights in it, someone worthy of you."

"I hope so." She stated, "But even then, what if he doesn't win, what if it's someone I'd rather never be anywhere near that wins?"

"If that happens…Come to me, I'll think of something, someway to help you, I promise."

She smiled.

"Thanks Liu Shan, I should get going now." She stated before leaving, Liu Shan watched her leave and sighed.

'_If only I had the courage to tell you the truth, but I can't…I just can't.'_

With a sigh he turned and headed back to his dwelling, his mind full of what Xingcai had told him as he desperately tried to think of a way to save her.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	3. The Tournament Begins

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 3 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, just wait and see :)  
Diao Lover: Thanks, well, just wait and see how things turn out :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**The Tournament Begins**

Xingcai sighed; she was stuck sitting on one of the palace balconies with her parents, looking down at the arena where the tournament was to take place. True to her word her mother had prevented her from wearing her usual; armoured dress and instead forced her to wear a dark green dress that she detested. Not only was it too feminine for her tastes, it affected her fighting capability by restricting mobility. Zhang Fei was clearing in a bad mood too; in fact the only one that was cheerful was her mother. As soon as the Emperor declared the tournament many tried to enter, but in the end only eight proved worthy enough of Lady Xiahou's approval of being rich and powerful. Xingcai glanced over at the eight men, who were preparing themselves, or their stand-ins, for battle. Some she didn't now by name but knew their reputation as good warriors with great influence. She also noticed, to her dismay that Cao Pi had entered the tournament, along with his younger brother Cao Zhi. It was well known that both brothers detested each other and strove to outdo the other in every endeavour. To her surprise however, some of the regional lords had become involved. She recognized Ma Teng from Liang and Gongsun Zan of Bei Ping instantly. She also saw the haughty figure of Yuan Shu as well as the more dignified figures of Liu Biao and Liu Zhang.

Two of the regional lords really stood out though, their reputation being second to none. The first was a man with slicked back white hair, a short black beard and moustache and black eyes. He was dressed in armour with red and black as the predominant colours and wore an orange-red cape; it was Sun Jian, the Tiger of Jiang Dong. The other had slick iron grey hair with a strand of white hair hanging above his left eye, a short black moustache and black eyes. His clothing consisted of elegant armoured robes in shades of yellow, gold and purple; on his head he wore an elegant gold headpiece. It was Yuan Shao of Ji Province. Something bothering Xingcai however, Sun Jian kept looking up towards them and giving small nods. When she turned her head she noticed that, contrary to her mother's opinion, that Sun Jian found her irresistible, her father was doing the same thing. Suddenly she realized that Sun Jian wasn't in the tournament to try and marry her, he was here to try and help her escape, her father had put him up to it somehow. It was then the last contestant arrived and Xingcai shuddered, what was her mother thinking letting him enter? The man may have great influence and power in the Imperial court as well as his home province and he may have great wealth, second only to the Emperor, but every maiden, not just Xingcai, detested and loathed this man. It was Dong Zhuo, the infamous collector of women with his grand dreams of paradise. He was accompanied by an unusual man in a yellow robe with whom he was talking.

Just then all talking stopped as an official rang the gong and the Emperor stood up from his seat in the Imperial balcony where he sat with his wife Lady He, his brother in law He Jin and his two sons.

"Welcome all to this grand occasion!" Emperor Ling announced, "On this day, the eight men chosen as worthy will fight until only one is left victorious…That man will become the husband of Lady Xingcai, who has graciously agreed to accept the winner as her husband!"

'_Like hell I did,'_ Xingcai thought bitterly as Zhang Fei snorted and glared at his wife, _'Mother's running this whole show, I don't get a say in anything.'_

"Now, without any further delay…Let us begin!"

With that Emperor Ling sat down and the official rang the gong again.

"You have already drawn lots to determine who you will be fighting, the number you hold is your personal number." The official explained, "Now, I will draw two lots from these bowls, the numbers I call out shall be the two that face each other."

He reached in and pulled out two slips of paper, he opened them and read out the numbers on them.

"Number 7, shall be fighting against…Number 3!"

Cao Pi smirked and walked into the arena, flanked by the man representing him. The man was a giant with hulking muscles, he was bald and had black eyes, he was clad in blue and silver armoured pants with several parts of silver armour on his body connected by two chains across his chest and back, he was armed with a dangerous looking axe. The opponent was a man armed with a club named Yu She. Yu She was an influential warrior who was well known for his martial prowess.

"So, I'm up against you!" He stated darkly to Cao Pi, "Ready, because I'll be walking away the victor here."

Cao Pi laughed humourlessly.

"I'd like to see you try and win," He retorted, "I wonder how long you'll last against Dian Wei."

With that Cao Pi stepped back and Dian Wei readied his weapon, Yu She did the same and finally the first fight of the tournament began.

The fight however was over before it really began, Dian Wei's strength proved to be too much for Yu She. Without even using his axe he grabbed Yu She and head butted him, knocking him out cold and winning Cao Pi the match. The following match was the same, a renowned warrior called Pan Feng lost to his opponent in a matter of seconds. The opponent was a large rotund man with black hair which was tied up, black eyes and armed with a club. He wore blue and gold pants with a red belt, gold boots and an ill fitting blue and gold shirt, his name was Xu Zhu. The next fight however wasn't over so quickly, both opponents had exceptionally skilled fighters representing them. The next match was Dong Zhuo against Cao Zhi. Cao Zhi's fighter was a man with short black hair, a black beard and moustache and black eyes. He was armed with a sword and wore an armoured fighting robe that was mostly different shades of blue, along with blue pants and boots. His name was Xiahou Dun. The other fighter however; was a lot more intimidating. He was very tall with long black hair tied back, black eyes and was armed with a massive halberd. He wore black armour decorated with gold and red designs and a large red pheasant tail headpiece. This was Dong Zhuo's greatest warrior, Lu Bu. There was no pre-match banter, both men were serious fighters and the moment the gong rang they began fighting.

Lu Bu made the first move, bringing his halberd down in a straight hit, Xiahou Dun blocked it easily, but the force of the blow almost caused his knees to buckle.

"Such strength." He muttered as Lu Bu grinned, "Of course, I am the greatest warrior alive, as you will soon see."

Xiahou Dun pushed him off and went to counter attack with several sword strikes but Lu Bu blocked them all. Losing his temper Xiahou Dun leapt into the air and made to bring his sword down on Lu Bu, but Lu bu swung his halberd in a wide arc, catching the sword and throwing Xiahou Dun across the arena. Xiahou Dun grimaced as he got to his feet and narrowly parried Lu Bu's follow up strike; all he succeeded in doing however was narrowly scratching Lu Bu's armour. Lu Bu laughed however and swung his halberd in a downwards arc again. This time Xiahou Dun wasn't quick enough to fully block or dodge and was sent sprawling on the ground in agony, clutching his left eye. Lu Bu was declared the winner and Xiahou Dun was removed for immediate treatment. Xingcai was shocked at the intensity and viciousness of Lu Bu's fighting.

'_Dong Zhuo has someone like that fighting for him.'_ She dismayed, _'How can any of the others win now…There must be someone who can at least beat Lu Bu, in this tournament.'_

She held onto that hope, she knew Lu Bu wasn't exaggerating his strength, but he was holding back due to the tournament rules. This gave her some hope that someone might be able to beat him, since he wasn't fighting at full strength. The following battle was another quick one, this time there were no extremely famous faces. Just two warriors who were considered masters of their weapons, Fang Yue, who wielded a great axe and Wu Anguo who fought using duel maces. The fight was over quickly with Wu Anguo proving himself the better fighter. There was to be a short break and then the next fight would begin. Xingcai left the arena, her mind racing, she felt backed into a corner, she needed some sort of plan, some means to escape if things went wrong.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	4. The Tournament Continues

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 4 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Diao Lover: Well, you'll find out soon, the final two will be revealed in this chapter.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Yeah well, it will be revealed later why he is helping, but suffice to say he has good reason to help Zhang Fei, well read on and see.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**The Tournament Continues**

Xingcai didn't know how it happened; it was as if her feet automatically led her there. But soon she standing outside Liu Shan's dwelling, talking with him about the tournament and her fears of Dong Zhuo. Liu Shan listened carefully to her problems and pondered quietly.

"Xingcai," He began, hesitantly. "I may have an idea…But, it could cause a lot of trouble."

"Anything's better than letting that corpulent swine anywhere near me." She replied, Liu Shan nodded and continued, "Cao-Cao, Yuan Shao and Dong Zhuo, these two men have great authority in the court, but I know a man who has even greater authority."

This surprised Xingcai, a man who could help her and had even greater influence than Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao and Cao-Cao.

"Who is it?" She asked desperately, Liu Shan gave her a small smile, "Who else, my father. He is Emperor Ling's half-brother and therefore uncle to Emperor Ling's sons."

"So we need to ask Lord Liu Bei for help." Liu Shan nodded but Xingcai realized something, "Emperor Ling has been ill for a long time, what if he dies before Lord Liu Bei can help us?"

Liu Shan's expression darkened, "I hadn't thought of that, if he dies, you can bet Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao Cao-Cao will try and get one of his sons on the throne but under their thumb."

"If that happened, I'm going to have to run, to get away from here." She stated, Liu Shan nodded, "Listen, regardless of what happens, I know my father can help us. If the tournament ends and Dong Zhuo wins, we must escape."

She nodded, "But how?"

"I will take care of that, I will see to it that horses are ready at any of the stables, meet me by the pavilion tonight, if you need to escape. If you don't arrive by morning, I'll assume everything went well."

Xingcai nodded and thanked him before hurrying back to the arena as the next match was about to begin.

The next match had Yuan Shao against Liu Zhang.

"Lord Yuan Shao." Liu Zhang stated, "I believe this will be quite a battle."

Yuan Shao shook his head and laughed, "You rustic simpleton, my warrior is certainly far superior to yours. You will soon see that the warriors of the Yuan are unbeatable."

At that comment Liu Zhang's warrior, Zhang Ren stepped forwards, his anger clear as he brandished his spear.

"Fool, no man can beat me; let's see your warrior then?"

With that the match began as Yuan Shao's warrior stepped up. He was the most unusual man Xingcai had ever seen. He was tall and slender with long black hair tied back in a ponytail and black eyes. He wore a pair of blue and white pants with purple shoes and purple armour with gold accents which covered his left chest area and shoulders, exposing a strange tattoo on his right shoulder, extending down to his chest. He also wore similar gauntlets and was armed with a large pair of golden claws.

"Ah, finally, the moment I take centre stage." The man declared gleefully, Zhang Ren stated at him, incredulous, "You expect me to fight him, this is a joke."

Yuan Shao smirked, "I think you'll find Zhang He is more than a match for the likes of you."

Zhang Ren scoffed and tried to attack but Zhang He danced out of the way. No matter how hard Zhang Ren tried Zhang He dodged each of his attacks with such elegance and grace that he appeared to be dancing around his opponent. Finally he attacked, using both claws to strike and knock Zhang Ren out of the arena and deprive him of his weapon. Yuan Shao had won the match and now it was time for the next one.

The next round pitted Liu Biao of Jing against Sun Jian. Each was represented by his best warrior. Liu Biao's warrior was a tall bulky man with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He was clad in full black and green armour with a green and gold helm. He was armed with a dangerous looking double voulge, his name was Wei Yan. Sun Jian's warrior was a tall muscle bound white haired man with black eyes and a white beard and moustache. His armour wasn't as protective as it didn't cover as much of his body; it was mostly red and black in colour. He was armed with a large distinctive club which resembled a large anchor, his name was Huang Gai. Both fighters sized each other up before Wei Yan recklessly charged in. The fight seemed to be quite even as they both struck and parried at each other but finally Huang Gai got the upper hand and won the match. The next match pitted Yuan Shu and his fighter Ji Ling against Gongsun Zan. After a long and protracted battle Ji Ling emerged victorious and the final battle of round one began, a man named Liao Hua against Ma Teng. Ma Teng's fighting was a tall black hair man with a short black moustache and black eyes, he was clad in full blue and silver armour with an elegant gold helmet with a black plume, he was armed with a large wolf teeth mace, his name was Pang De. As expected for someone of his obvious power Pang De made short work of Liao Hua and the second round was ready to begin.

The second round didn't take nearly as long as the first one and soon the difference in skill and strength between the fighters was obvious. Dian Wei fought against Xu Zhu and after a hard battle was able to pull off a win. Lu Bu defeated Wu Anguo with minimal effort as did Zhang He in his fight against Ji Ling. Finally Huang Gai and Pang De fought each other and after another intense battle Huang Gai won. There were only four fighters left, four lords being represented, Cao Pi, Dong Zhuo, Sun Jian and Yuan Shao. Lu Bu fought against Dian Wei in the first fight and defeated him; Cao Pi was no longer eligible to marry Xingcai. However she was dismayed after the next battle, as was Zhang Fei, as their plan fell apart. Sun Jian also lost, Zhang He dancing circles around Huang Gai and defeating him in a rather humiliating fashion. So it was now down to the final, Dong Zhuo, represented by Lu Bu, against Yuan Shao, represented by Zhang He. Before the final fight could begin however an official ran out into the middle of the arena and made a shocking announcement.

"His Imperial Highness, Emperor Ling, the Son of Heaven…He is dead, claimed by his illness!"

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it. Read and review please.


	5. Desperation

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 5 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it :)  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, well, read and see what happens :)  
Diao Lover: Thanks glad you enjoyed it, well, the answer will be revealed now. Actually it doesn't ruin his plan, just delays it a bit.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Desperation**

With the death of Emperor Ling all the officials and regional lords began clamouring to try and settle the succession matter quickly, trying to get one of the two sons on the throne so they could benefit. The biggest players in this intrigue were Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao who supported the eldest son Liu Bian, and Dong Zhuo who supported the younger son, Liu Xie. This incident had put the tournament on hold, with only the final match to go. While her mother was preventing Xingcai from leaving her sight for too long, she was able to get enough time alone to send a message to Liu Shan to inform him of what had happened and the need to delay the escape plan. Her mother also prevented her from changing into more comfortable clothes, forcing her to stay in the dress she had been forced to wear.

"How unfortunate." Her mother stated, "Just when we were about to find out who would be your husband."

Xingcai didn't say anything; she was really getting fed up of having to listen to her mother's constant talk of the wedding and such. Even worse, her mother kept talking like Xingcai had a part in it, as if she was making the decisions. Her mother had also ordered the family guards to keep a close watch on Xingcai; therefore she couldn't sneak out at night. So all she could do was wait the night out and see what the morning would bring.

For Xingcai, the morning brought the worst possible news. As a result of them holding council well into the night the succession dispute between the nobles was resolved. Liu Bian had been placed on the throne as Emperor Shao. Due to his young age Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao became regents for him. At some point in the night the Palace Eunuchs had tried to kidnap the two children since they were after power themselves. They were all killed but so were He Jin and Empress He.

'_So much blood spilled in one night.' _Xingcai thought bitterly, _'And all mother can think about is this stupid tournament.'_

It was true Lady Xiahou kept on mentioning that she hoped the tournament would continue soon. She got her wish and soon they were all seated and waiting for the final to begin. Yuan Shao against Dong Zhuo, each represented by their fighters, Zhang He and Lu Bu. Yuan Shao and Dong Zhuo glared at each other.

"So, I have to fight you." Dong Zhuo sneered, "This will be easy."

"Don't mock me you overweight buffoon." Yuan Shao chided, "I see I will need to teach you some manners."

Dong Zhuo laughed, "Don't think just because you have the Emperor under your thumb that you can do what you want. You'll soon see what I mean."

With that they both stepped back and Lu Bu and Zhang He stepped forwards and prepared themselves for battle.

Lu Bu acted first and attempted to deliver a head on attack to Zhang He, who quickly performed a leaping flip which allowed him to dodge the attack. The battle continued like this for some time with Zhang He dodging the attacks and Lu Bu blocked the counterattacks. It was clear however that Lu Bu's temper was close to exploding.

"Just you wait, you prancing fairy," He bellowed, "I'll teach you not to cross me!"

"Try all you might, brute." Zhang He shot back, "But you'll find this butterfly too graceful for you to catch."

Just then Xingcai heard a voice a little further along in the audience.

"That fool, he's going to get himself hurt if he keeps that up."

She looked over and saw that it was Xiahou Dun. He had recovered from his battle but it was clear the damage to his eye must have been severe; he was covering it with an eye-patch. Turning her attention back to the fight she watched as Zhang He dodged again. However this time Lu Bu was ready and with a powerful roar he swung his halberd in a wide arc, catching Zhang He by surprise. Zhang He let out a yelp of pain and shock as he flew through the air and collided with the spectators. Having been removed from the arena he had lost the fight, Lu Bu had won, Dong Zhuo had won, he was now the one who was going to be chosen to be Xingcai's husband.

Xingcai stared devastated as her mother approached Dong Zhuo and greeted him courteously. She then hurried back to Xingcai.

"This way, you have to get ready." She said sharply, Xingcai was still in shock, "Ready for what?"

"To meet your new husband, now, let's go."

There was nothing she could do to resist and her mother dragged her home to get changed. Some time later Xingcai gazed, horrified at her appearance. She was dressed in a green dress that, in her opinion, was far too revealing. The dress had large slits up the front and back that stopped just short of exposing indecent flesh, but meant her legs were completely exposed beneath the flaps of green material that hung down to her ankles. Also, leading the material from just below the neckline down to her collar bone was semi-transparent, revealing some cleavage, finally the shoes had a raised heel which made it very difficult for he to walk in them (**A/N: Picture Zhenji's DW4 outfit but in Shu's colors)**.

"There perfect." Her mother stated, smiling happily, "Now, it's time, let's go meet your new husband."

'_Oh god, I can't believe this, it's bad enough he's already a lecherous pig.' _She thought frantically, _'For him to see me in this, I've got no choice; I have to act, tonight.'_

As they walked Xingcai spotted Liu Shan and nodded to him, he understood, the escape plan was back on and had to take place tonight. They walked into the courtyard where Dong Zhuo was waiting for them. His lecherous grin got even wider when he saw Xingcai's dress.

"Greetings my lady." He greeted, "It's a true pleasure to finally see you up close."

He took her hand and kissed it, she fought to keep herself from screaming.

'_Oh god, I feel like I'm gonna throw up.'_

"Well, I can hardly wait, I spoke with your mother and it's obvious neither of us want to wait."

'_Yeah right, I never want to marry you.'_ Xingcai thought to herself as she managed to smile and reply, "So, when's the wedding?"

"The day after tomorrow."

Xingcai nodded and, after exchanging further 'pleasantries' she was allowed to return home.

That night she waited, she knew her mother was now in bed, the guards would be outside her room as usual but she already had another escape route. So, as quietly as possible, she changed into her usual armoured dress and then made her escape out of the window. Being careful to evade the guards in the courtyard she slipped out of the family dwelling and hurried to secluded pavilion. Liu Shan was waiting for her there.

"Lord Liu Shan," She called out desperately, "We have to go at once. If anyone of them find me I…"

"It's okay Xingcai," He reassured her, "Follow me, I've already arranged everything, we're going to stables by the southern gate, from there we have a two day ride ahead of us, we'll have to cut through Yan but with Cao-Cao here, we shouldn't have any trouble."

She nodded and followed him. When they reached the stables however she hesitated as she saw someone else there.

"It's okay, Xu Shu is going to help us." Xu Shu nodded and indicated the three horses, "We're ready to go anytime."

"Right, let's go."

So they all mounted and rode away as fast as they could, Xingcai breathed a sigh of relief.

'_Finally, freedom at last…but for how long?'_ She pondered.

She knew, after all, that Dong Zhuo would not take this lightly and would most likely send his army to attack. She just wondered what Liu Bei's decision would be, especially when faced with such odds.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	6. Escaping Danger

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 6 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Yeah, tell me about it, glad you enjoyed it.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Well read on to see, I don't hate Shu but they're not my favorite, I'm a Cao Wei loyalist.  
Diao Lover: Yeah well, things are about to get more intense. Glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Escaping Danger**

Xingcai remained quiet as she rode with Liu Shan and Xu Shu. They were both talking quietly, figuring out how to explain things to Liu Bei. She was edgy, especially since they were travelling through Yan, Cao-Cao's territory.

'_Cao Ang has been left in charge here.'_ She thought to herself, _'News from Luo Yang about what's happened shouldn't have reached him yet. They'll just be finding out we've escaped.'_

Just then Xu Shu glanced behind them.

"We're being followed!" He called out.

Xingcai glanced back and saw a single figure on horseback pursuing them. She had left her sword and shield back home in Xu however and was unarmed.

"Great, now what?" She asked, Liu Shan and Xu Shu turned around and they all gathered.

They waited tensely as they figure approached, just then, to their surprise they saw the recognized the figure. His large Cobra Pike was immediately distinctive, it was Zhang Fei.

"Finally, I was looking all over for you guys!" He called out. Xingcai was relieved, "Father, what are you doing here?"

"I'm not any happier than you are about this." He explained, "I realized you were missing and I figured you were escaping somewhere. So I came to help you."

"Father…" Xingcai smiled, "Thank you."

So with Zhang Fei joining them they continued to ride towards Xu.

While travelling Xingcai turned to Liu Shan.

"Are you sure your father can help me?" She asked; he nodded. "Of course, my father would not stand for something like this."

"What if he refuses to challenge the Emperor, or more likely, his regents?" She asked, Liu Shan sighed, "If that is the case, we'll just have to keep running."

"We?"

"I refuse to let that man Dong Zhuo add you to his 'collection'." Liu Shan stated, "If that means I have to take you away from even my father, I will do it."

Xingcai was surprised at this and couldn't seem to find her voice to reply. Just then however they heard a voice calling them out. They stopped and saw a group of men on horseback approaching them, at their head was Cao Ang.

"Hold there!" He called out, "This is my father's territory, what business have you here?"

Xingcai and Liu Shan shared a nervous glance, Zhang Fei became especially edgy, but Xu Shu remained calm.

"Our apologies Lord Cao Ang." He stated, "We are in fact making our way home and this was the most direct route."

Cao Ang regarded him with suspicion, "Making your way home, so the business in the capital is concluded."

Xu Shu nodded, "Yes, I believe your father will be home soon."

Cao Ang lowered his spear.

"Very well, my apologies for stopping you." He stated, "Carry on."

Cao Ang then rode away with his men. Xu Shu turned to the others.

"Come, we must hurry, we don't know how long it will take for him to discover the truth."

They rode on as fast as they could until finally nightfall caused them to stop for the night. They were on the borders of Xu, the following day they would be able to make it to see Liu Bei.

The following morning however they heard the sounds of thundering hooves. They quickly got up and leapt on their horses. But it was too late; Cao Ang and his men were approaching. They knew they had been caught and he now knew the truth. Making a decision on the spot, Zhang Fei raised his Cobra Pike and charged out. Cao Ang realized that Zhang Fei was charging out to challenge him, he rode out to accept. That turned out to be a big mistake since Zhang Fei was easily stronger than him and killed him in one blow. In a panic the rest of the men fled and Zhang Fei rode back.

"We've gotta hurry!" He yelled, the others agreed and they rode fast, over the border and into Xu.

As they rode into Xu they feared that the border would not deter any pursuers. However they soon reached safety as they passed Xia Pi and were seen by their allies stationed there. They informed their allies about their plight and were immediately directed to Xuzhuo Castle. They arrived and hurried into the council chamber. There were three people there. The first was a man of average height with black hair with two long bangs tied off and black eyes. He was dressed in elegant green armour with a dusty rose coloured cape along with a gold headpiece with a white plume, this was Liu Bei. With him was a large tall muscular man with black hair and a long sleek black beard and black eyes. He wore green armoured robes with gold plates and gold headpiece, he was carrying a large Crescent Blade called Green Dragon, his name was Guan Yu, he was the third oath brother with Liu Bei and Zhang Fei. The third man was tall and muscular too; his black hair was long and tied back in a long ponytail and black eyes. He was clad in silver armour that left his right arm bare and had a blue cloak over his right shoulder. He was armed with a large Dragon Spear; his name was Zhao Yun, a close friend to Liu Bei and the oath brothers.

Liu Bei was surprised to see them.

"What are you doing here?" He asked; Xu Shu stepped forwards, "It's a long story, my lord. Lord Liu Shan and Lady Xingcai told me the story, here is what happened."

Xu Shu explained the situation while the others waited tensely, just then Liu Bei cut across them to deliver shocking news, Emperor Shao was dead, most likely poisoned and Liu Xie was now Emperor Xian and under Dong Zhuo's thumb as regent.

Dong Zhuo meanwhile was enraged, he was directing a speech about going to attack Liu Bei with an army and demand the return of Xingcai to him. He was urging several regional lords to join him, some refused to take part and left. Others were leaving to prepare their armies. Therefore he was talking to Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao.

"Dong Zhuo, while I understand you are angry and wish to claim back your bride to be…" Yuan Shao stated, "I don't see why I have to get involved."

Dong Zhuo glared at Yuan Shao, "You have to get involved because I'm ordering you too get involved!"

"You have no authority over me; you are a regional lord, just the same as me." Yuan Shao replied haughtily, "Therefore you cannot command me."

One of the messengers approached and spoke to Cao-Cao.

"I am willing to aid you Dong Zhuo." Cao-Cao stated, Yuan Shao was shocked, "Cao-Cao, what are you saying?"

"I have my own reasons." He stated darkly, "That oaf Zhang Fei killed my son!"

Dong Zhuo nodded, "Very well Cao-Cao, you have the honour of leading the vanguard. That way you are nearest and can get your revenge."

Left with no choice, not wanted Cao-Cao to lose himself within Dong Zhuo's ranks, Yuan Shao agreed to join and headed back to Ji to ready his army. Cao-Cao returned to Yan for the same reason. Dong Zhuo began to ready his army, desperate to reclaim Xingcai.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	7. The First Wave

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 7 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Well, it's going to be a long battle just for Dong Zhuo to try and get what he wants.  
Diao Lover: Yeah, he got a message from the capital which told him of the escape. Well, the war has just begun.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, technically Jin isn't a Kingdom it's a Dynasty. As for me, I don't view things like that, for me it's Wei, then everybody else. Glad you are enjoying it, here is the next chapter.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**The First Wave**

Liu Bei had finished hearing the story of what had happened when they received news of the approaching army belonging to Cao-Cao.

"They seek to us by force." He declared, Zhang Fei groaned, "Cao-Cao's involved because of me."

"So it would seem." Liu Bei stated, finally he made up his mind. "Well we'll have to meet this onslaught. They will Xia Pi first; we must reinforce the defenders there."

He stood up and began to give his orders.

"Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Guan Ping." They all turned and bowed to him. "You are to go to Xia Pi and aid those already there. Remember, you must defend the castle with all you have. Guan Yu, I am naming you the commander of this battle."

"Yes brother, I will not let you down." Guan Yu replied and together with Zhang Fei and his adopted son Guan Ping, a youth with spiky brown hair and brown eyes, dressed in green armoured clothing and wielding a massive great sword, left for Xia Pi.

After they left Liu Bei turned to Xu Shu and Zhao Yun.

"We must look to this castle's own defenses and to Xiao Pei too." He stated, Zhao Yun bowed, "Fear not my lord, for I shall defend Xiao Pei, I will go at once to meet with those already there."

Liu Bei nodded and accepted as Zhao Yun left, leaving Liu Bei, Xu Shu and the remaining officers in Xuzhuo as defenders of the main castle.

As she watched everything unfold Xingcai felt consumed with guilt as she realized what her running away had caused. She left the room and immediately headed to her own chambers, before she reached them however Liu Shan caught up with her.

"Xingcai, what's wrong, where are you going?"

"I'm sorry Lord Liu Shan, sorry to all of you." She replied, "This is my fault, all of it…This happened because of me, all your father's officers, even your father himself…They are putting themselves in terrible danger because of me."

Liu Shan shook his head.

"Do not feel guilty Xingcai, don't forget, it was I who convinced you to escape. I'm the one who arranged the escape." He sighed and lowered his head, "If anyone is to blame for this…it is me."

Xingcai smiled sadly at him.

"Looks like we both bare blame for this." She remarked, He returned her smile and they both decided to return to the council room. Once there they saw Liu Bei was sitting alone.

"Father." He looked up as Liu Shan spoke. "I'm sorry…"

Xingcai shook her head, "No, we're sorry, we've brought all this…misery and torment upon you. Due to our own foolish and selfish decisions."

Liu Bei however smiled and stood up.

"No, neither of you are to blame. Xingcai, when faced with the circumstances you were, any maiden would have done the same." He stated, "I am proud of you my son, for helping and standing up for what is right."

They both looked at each other surprised at this; Liu Bei walked up and placed his hands on their shoulders.

"I know love and compassion when I see it." He stated, "You two, are the very embodiment of it. Now let's talk no more of guilt and instead allow me to turn my thoughts to the defense of the land and people."

They both agreed and allowed Liu Bei to return to his thoughts while they left the room, both pondering what he had said.

'_What did he mean by that?' _Xingcai wondered, _'How could he…possibly know, that I…'_ She glanced over at Liu Shan and saw he was deep in thought, he turned to look at her and she quickly looked away, embarrassed at having been caught staring at him.

"Xingcai?" She shook her head. "It's nothing, I'm fine."

"Well, okay then." He replied, _'My father saw it clear as day…But what did he mean when he said you two…Does she…?'_

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and together they left the council room and headed outside.

Meanwhile, at Xia Pie, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Guan Ping had met with the castles defenders; Jian Yong, Mi Fang and Sun Qian. They had been warned of the coming threat and had prepared their defenses. However the difference between the two armies was immediately obvious with Liu Bei's forces having fewer numbers. However Guan Yu was not discouraged.

"The enemy may be more numerous than us." He stated, "But we are better trained and stronger, let's show them our might!"

There was a resounding cheer from the army and together they rode out and arrayed themselves in front of the castle. Cao-Cao's army approached and also arrayed, his two commanders for the battle at the forefront, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan. Cao Pi and Dian Wei were also present. Also present was a young man with medium length dark blonde hair that partially covered his right eye, brown eyes and dressed in rather elegant black, blue and purple coloured clothes, he was armed with an orb and sceptre, his name was Guo Jia. After they had arrayed Xiahou Dun called over to them.

"Guan Yu, you and your troops are hoarding a fugitive and keeping a maiden hostage from her husband." He stated, "What do you have to say in your defense?"

Guan Yu simply glared and replied sharply.

"Xiahou Dun; that blow to your eye seems to have affected your brain too." He then continued, "Lady Xingcai fled of her own will, rather than be tied down to that tyrant Dong Zhuo. Zhang Fei acted only in self-defense, you are being misguided!"

Xiahou Dun growled.

"Enough of this nonsense. Words are meaningless I see." He stated before calling out, "Li Dian!"

Li Dian charged out, spear at the ready. From the side of Liu Bei's army Guan Ping charged out. They immediately began duelling and Guan Ping, who far outclassed his opponent, won the duel, knocking Li Dian off his horse and forcing him to flee on foot. The entire army charged and forced Cao-Cao's to retreat. Finally however Guan Yu called them back.

"We cannot go too far ahead, we must stay to defend the castle. Let us ready the defense for the next attack." He called out, "This battle is not over yet."

So they did as he said and returned to the castle. On orders from Xiahou Yuan the Cao-Cao army formed a camp and prepared to besiege the castle as the battle truly began.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	8. Striking Xia Pi

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 8 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Very Appropriate.  
Diao Lover: Yeah, they are, not for much longer though, here's the next chapter.  
Phil The Persona Guy: What do you mean _or_, that should be and, they'll need both to get out of this, LOL :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Striking Xia Pi**

After setting up camp Cao-Cao's forces met to discuss their plans.

"Hmmm, they've got a lot of their strong warriors defending this castle." Xiahou Dun stated, "We're going to have to find some way to break them."

Xiahou Yuan was the first to reply.

"We have to see just how they are going to fight, if they're going to focus on defense or if they'll come out and fight us." He stated, "Our reinforcements from Yuan Shao should arrive soon and attack the north, I'll take Yue Jin, Li Dian and Cao Hong and attack the west gate."

The others nodded in agreement and Xiahou Dun turned to Dian Wei.

"Dian Wei, while Yuan takes care of this, I would like for you to attack the south gate with Xun Yu, Yu Jin and Xun You." Dian Wei nodded, "Leave it to me."

Xiahou Dun looked around and noticed someone was missing.

"Where is Guo Jia?" He asked, Cao Pi sighed and answered, "He's out, said something about scouting and observing the lay of the land."

Xiahou Dun nodded, "I see, well then, Master Cao Pi, you and I will need to defend the Main Camp."

Cao Pi nodded, "Indeed, let's get started then."

Everyone one got into their positions and the attacking armies began to charge out as the Liu Bei army readied their defense.

Almost immediately Xiahou Yuan's unit found itself in trouble as Guan Yu and Jian Yong began their defense of the west gate using ballista and Xiahou Yuan's unit couldn't even get close to the gate. He growled.

"Argh, this is getting us nowhere!" Finally, he realized that the situation would likely be the same at the other gates too, "We better pull back, we need to see if our allies are okay."

As they pulled back they heard that Yuan Shao's reinforcements had arrived, they were led by Yuan Xi, his second son.

"Finally, okay, we need to make sure the others pull back and then we can liaise with them and regroup back at the camp."

Luckily Dian Wei's unit seemed to realize they were being beat back too, also by ballista and so they pulled back. However the Yuan forces were unable to retreat, they were caught in a heavy barrage of ballista shots and catapult attacks, as well as Zhang Fei directly attacking them. The Cao-Cao army quickly regrouped but received word from Xiahou Dun to return to the main camp while Cao Pi went to liberate the Yuan army. He rode to where they were under attack and spotted the officers and troops desperately trying to fend off the ballista and catapult attacks as well as attacks from the enemy troops.

"Have the proud officers of the Yuan been reduced to this?" He asked rhetorically to Yuan Xi, he glowered at Cao Pi, "We are allies now, have you come to gloat, or help."

"Help, now, I've already cut you a path, so why don't you use it to escape."

Yuan Xi grunted and called for his men to retreat. As they began retreating however one of the officers caught Cao Pi's eye. It was a woman of exquisite beauty with long dark hair and black eyes. She was dressed in a yellow and orange dress that exposed her midriff and had a mesh pattern over her chest, revealing a large amount of cleavage. She also wore a gold headpiece with feathers adorning it and was armed with a rather unusual weapon, a flute.

"My, what a magnificent flower to find on the battlefield." Cao Pi stated, the woman smirked at him, "Why thank you, you're not so bad yourself."

"Hey, we're trying to escape here!" Yuan Xi shouted, "C'mon Zhenji, we have to go!"

She laughed, "Alright my lord, I'll see you later, lord Cao Pi."

With that she rode off and Yuan Xi glared at Cao Pi.

"I'm warning you," He growled, "Stay away from my wife."

He galloped off as Cao Pi smirked.

"Your wife," He muttered, "You are nowhere near worthy of her."

He followed them and soon the two armies gathered in their main camp.

After they gathered at the camp and reported what had happened Xiahou Dun was surprised.

"I don't believe this." He muttered, "Despite having so little troops they manage to turn things to their advantage with simple defense weapons."

It was then that Guo Jia came sauntering in calmly. Xiahou Dun glared at him.

"About time, are you aware just what has happened?!"

"As a matter of fact I am." Guo Jia replied with his usual wistful smile, "You made a mistake; you shouldn't have attacked until I was done. I could've given you advice that would have turned the battle in our favour and cost you no troops."

Yuan Xi glared, "Quit your bluffing…" Cao Pi cut across him, "Guo Jia does not bluff Yuan Xi…In fact, it's almost…frightening, that he doesn't."

"Enough flattery lord Cao Pi." Guo Jia commented, "Now, the method is simple, this castle is strong yes but…It has one weakness. It's poor drainage system; coupled with the floodgate nearby means we can easily drown the castle."

Xiahou Yuan sighed.

"Why didn't you tell us that in the first place?" He asked, Guo Jia turned to him, "Because I had to look around, I found while surveying the land."

Xiahou Dun however was satisfied and immediately began plans to break the floodgates and flood Xia Pi before attacking it with all their might. That night, in the castle the officers were all assembled on the wall of the west gate.

"It's too quiet father." Guan Ping commented, "The enemy is up to something."

Zhang Fei laughed, "After the beating we gave them they'd better come up with something good."

"Hmmm, I don't like this, something feels…ominous." Guan Yu stated when suddenly the rumbling began.

They all looked around but it was too late, before they could react their doors were forced open as water flooded the castle and only the east gate remained untouched by the flood attack.

"They had this planned, we've no choice they're going to launch an all out attack, we must flee!"

They all hurried and soon they grabbed everything of importance and fled through the east gate, just as the other three gates were swamped by Cao-Cao's troops and their Yuan reinforcements. Cao-Cao's army immediately claimed the castle and Cao-Cao himself began to head to make his base in it as it was being repaired and drained of water. The Yuan army prepared to liaise with their main unit. Guan Yu led his army back to Xuzhuo, unaware however that danger lay ahead of him.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	9. Skirmish on the Xu Plains

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 9 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Glad you are enjoying it, well right now the odds are against Liu Bei, but, just wait and see.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, I don't see why Sun Jian should have a problem, since he never met Zhuge Liang. As for Yuan Shao, wait and see, I've got something special lined up for him.  
Diao Lover: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yes it is :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Skirmish on the Xu Plains**

Guan Yu lead his army away from Xia Pi. He knew they had to hurry and get back to Xuzhuo to inform Liu Bei of the fall of Xia Pi. However his scouts soon reported a problem, their path forward was blocked by another contingent of the Yuan Army, this time led by Yuan Shang, Yuan Shao's youngest son. Worse still they received word that Yuan Xi was leading a small force to strike them from behind.

"We have no choice," Guan Yu stated, "We will have to push through and force our way to Xuzhuo."

"Leave the front to me brother!" Zhang Fei called out, "I'll clear us a path." Guan Yu nodded and agreed as Guan Ping then spoke up, "I'll watch the rear father, you focus on guiding everybody else to safety."

Guan Yu then readied his troops and with Jian Yong, Mi Fang and Sun Qian and their troops they began to march; Zhang Fei and his troops charged on ahead to meet the Yuan army while Guan Ping and his troops commanded the rear guard. Zhang Fei soon met with the vanguard of Yuan Shang's army, it was Zhang He, they immediately engaged in a duel.

"Come, let's see how you fight." Zhang He called out, "I refuse to let one of true beauty such as myself be defeated by an oaf like you."

Zhang Fei raised his eyebrow, the taunt didn't anger him like it usually did due to the strange nature of the one delivering it, "There's something not quite right with you, isn't there?"

With that response the duel began. Yuan Shang positioned his unit on top of a nearby hill in order to watch the battle from there. Chunyu Qiong had blockaded the pass through which escape lay, he was backed up by the strategist Shen Pei. The other strategist, Feng Ji took up position alongside Yuan Shang and ordered three of their officers, Lu Xiang, Lu Kuang and Lu Weihuang to advance on Guan Yu.

Guan Ping meanwhile was fending off an attack from Yuan Xi when he received unexpected back up, a group of troops launched and ambush and forced Yuan Xi to retreat.

"Master Guan Ping. Master Xu Shu sent me to aid you." The leader of the unit called out, it was Mi Zhu.

Together they hurried onwards, with the threat of a rear attack gone they hurried to aid Guan Yu and the others who were fending off arrow attacks from two of the three officers sent to attack them. Guan Ping hurried up to where Lu Xiang was directing the archer attacks and launched a surprise attack, injuring him and forcing him to flee. In a rage Lu Kuang charged at Guan Ping but was beaten back and also forced to flee. Guan Ping then hurried to rejoin the main unit.

"Father, the threat from behind has been removed and we've forced two of their units to flee." He called out, Guan Yu nodded, "Excellent son, now let's push on, we must force Chunyu Qiong out of the way if we are to escape."

They continued to move onwards, Shen Pei and Feng Ji led their units to attack directly while at the same time Lu Weihaung launched an ambush.

"We are being pressed with our backs against the wall." Guan Yu lamented when suddenly Zhang Fei appeared and forced Lu Weihaung to retreat.

"Brother, was your duel successful?" Guan Yu asked as he forced Shen Pei and Feng Ji away. Zhang Fei shrugged, "This little incident came up, so we called it a draw."

Guan Yu laughed and the reunited army all charged for the escape point, there were now only two obstacles. Yuan Shang, who they knew wouldn't get involved and Chunyu Qiong who was directly blocking the escape route. They charged straight for him and, startling him Guan Yu wounded him and forced him and his men to flee. They finally escaped as the Yuan Army retreated, heading back to the main camp set up by Dong Zhuo where most of the three armies were based.

Guan Yu and his army returned to Xuzhuo. Once there they reported to Liu Bei about the loss of Xia Pi, Liu Bei sighed and shook his head.

"This isn't going very well; we're already being pushed back…" He paused and then nodded, "We still haven't heard from Zhao Yun in Xiao Pei but we can't afford to take risks."

It was then someone else walked into the room. The figure was a slender young woman with short brown hair and green eyes; she was clad in a red and purple short dress that also exposed her right shoulder and similar coloured gloves and boots.

"We don't have to do this alone Liu Bei." She stated with a smile, Liu Bei looked up at her and also smiled, "Shangxiang…I understand what you are saying, but I could put your family and their army is such a position."

Sun Shangxiang stepped closer to her husband and smiled wider.

"They wouldn't refuse; it wouldn't be any trouble for them…My father and Quan both respect you, and Ce would be overjoyed at the thought of such a huge battle."

"I guess…I guess you are right, thank you my lady." He then turned to the messengers, "Prepare envoys, we will send to Wu for aid."

They agreed and Shangxiang offered to help, stating that she would be able to perfectly guarantee help from her family.

Meanwhile Liu Shan was up on the wall above the main gate of Xuzhuo. He sighed and shook his head.

'_All this carnage, all this chaos, because of me.'_ He thought dejectedly, _'Well, I have to do what I can to set things right.'_

Just then he heard Xingcai approach.

"Lord Liu Shan, are you okay?" She asked, he nodded, "I'm fine…It's just. I have to take responsibility. I caused this, I have to do what I can to make things right."

"You're not thinking of going out there and fighting are you?" He nodded and she gasped, "You can't, please, you can't."

"Xingcai I…" She shook her head and grabbed his shoulders, "Don't, please, I'll never forgive myself…"

"Look, I…" He was cut off however because at that moment the emotions within Xingcai bubbled over and she pulled him closer until their lips met.

They were lost as Liu Shan, acting on instinct, returned the kiss as they both found themselves caught up in their feelings. Finally they parted and Liu Shan managed to smile.

"I…Looks like…My father was right." He finally stammered out, Xingcai smiled and nodded, "Yes, now do you see, I can't go out and fight, my equipment isn't ready, but I don't want you risking yourself."

"I'm sorry Xingcai, I have to," He replied, "It is my obligation to fix what I have done." Xingcai finally gave up, "Okay, I won't stop you but…only on one condition. My brother Bao goes with you."

Liu Shan agreed and soon rode out of Xuzhuo at the head of his unit, accompanied by Zhang Bao and his troops. Xingcai watched them leave.

"I just hope he comes back safe." She muttered, suddenly her fathers voice startled her, "Don't worry; he'll be fine, Bao's watching over him."

"Father, I…" She stopped when she saw his smirked and groaned, he knew about the kiss and their obvious feelings, "I'll just, head back inside."

She hurried away, desperate to escape before Zhang Fei made any jokes. Meanwhile Liu Shan and Zhang Bao rode with their troops heading to Xiao Pei.

'_Hold on Zhao Yun, I am coming to help,'_ Liu Shan thought with determination, _'This is it, I will fight and set right what I have done wrong, for everyone's sake.'_

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	10. Battle of Xiao Pei

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 10 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Yup, the Tiger and his cubs are coming to join.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Ummm, that sounds more like Ce you're describing there, if you actually look at Sun Jian you'll see he does use strategy, I'll explain more about what I mean in a PM. Yup, he's going to fight and I guess it would be irony.  
Diao Lover: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yup they sure have :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Battle of Xiao Pei**

Liu Shan and Zhang Bao rode with their troops towards Xiao Pei and found there was already a battle raging. A famous Yuan general called Wen Chou and one of the strategists, Xu You, were engaging Zhao Yun in battle. Liu Shan and Zhang Bao rushed in to help and both Yuan officers, fearing the reinforcements would overwhelm them, fled. Zhao Yun turned to the group and was shocked.

"Lord Liu Shan, what are you doing here out on the battlefield?" He asked, Liu Shan maintained his serious expression, "I am here to take responsible for the part I played in bringing this carnage upon us."

Zhao Yun nodded.

"I understand, well, we better stick together, I don't want you putting yourself at risk."

So together the three units, led by Zhao Yun, charged out to where more fighting was going on.

"We must hurry!" Zhao Yun called out before explaining the situation. "Chen Deng and Chen Shi are out there trapped amidst the enemy. Ma Liang and Chen Gui are defending the castle but are also under attack. We must push the enemy and hold out for as long as we can."

They charged over to where the majority of the Yuan troops were attacking.

They soon identified the attackers. Xin Ping, Xin Pi, Guo Tu and Ying Shao. Seeing the reinforcements caused confusion among the Yuan ranks and they were able to break through and rescue Ma Liang and Chen Gui. The fight out was much easier with the larger group being able to break through and even wound Xin Pi. While the Yuan Army hurried to regroup the Liu Bei army returned to the castle, the Yuan army attacking it, led by Zhu Ling, had fled to regroup with the main unit. Once they were all regrouped in the castle and prepared for the defense Zhao Yun turned to Liu Shan.

"Our opponent is Yuan Shao himself, as well as his eldest son Yuan Tan and the ones we have already met of the field of battle." Liu Shan nodded and sighed, "I don't how long we can hold out, Xia Pi has already fallen into Cao-Cao's hands."

"What?" Zhao Yun gasped shocked, "This complicates things, now we have to watch for an attack on our flank too, if Dong Zhuo has already prepared his army…then we could end up facing a battle on three fronts."

Much chagrined by this Zhao Yun began pondering some means of avoiding what seemed to be a pointless struggle against their own destruction.

Finally he sighed.

"It seems like there is nothing we can do, except abandon Xiao Pei and hope to reclaim it another day." He finally said, Liu Shan also sighed, "I understand your logic, but if we flee we will be pursued and possibly loose too many of our men."

Zhao Yun then smirked.

"Not with what I have in mind." He stated before giving orders.

Soon the Yuan army attacking Xiao Pei arrived in force. They stopped however and even Yuan Shao froze and stared at the sight before him. The gates to Xiao Pei were open, everywhere he looked he could see the banners of Liu Bei's army and standing above the main gate was Zhao Yun. Zhao Yun disappeared from sight the moment he saw the army and moments later, on his magnificent white steed and brandishing his spear he rode out and issued a challenge. Brimming with confidence Wen Chou rode out to accept the challenge. As they struck and parried each others strikes Wen Chou quickly tired while Zhao Yun was still burning with energy. Realizing this he was about to turn about and flee when Zhao Yun, inexplicably drew off and fled back into the city. The Yuan army dared not attack due to the banners; they were suspicious of an ambush. However Zhao Yun did not come out again. Finally, unable to take it anymore, they entered and found there were no soldiers and that Zhao Yun and everyone within had escaped, they had fallen victim to an empty castle stratagem. Yuan Shao however did not lose his temper, he made Xiao Pei his and gathered his whole army there. Finally Dong Zhuo's army arrived and soon the three armies liaised and prepared for their attack on Xuzhuo.

Meanwhile Zhao Yun's army returned to Xuzhuo and warned Liu Bei about the fall of Xiao Pei and the upcoming threat. Shangxiang had returned and told them that Sun Jian would be bringing his army to aid them.

"Very well then, my mind is made up," Liu Bei stated, "We shall stand and we shall fight. I shall protect my son and Xingcai; these monsters shall not touch you."

The others all bowed and prepared for war as they knew the battle was soon approaching. Their backs were against the wall however so they knew they would have to bring about a miracle if they were to achieve victory. They were confident however as they knew; although their enemies were many, they were not friends with each other and were fighting together only out of either revenge or force. If the bonds between them could somehow be broken then they might turn on each other and therefore, victory was possible.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	11. Calm before the Storm

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 11 of my Dynasty Warriors story, a short one but hopefully still good.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, of course Lu Bu is there, why wouldn't he be.  
Diao Lover: Thanks, glad you liked it :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Calm before the Storm**

With both their outer castles taken Liu Bei's army was in dire straits. They were all preparing for their next battle; it would have to be a defensive battle as they would be all three of their opponents would be attacking them simultaneously. Xingcai was relieved when Liu Shan returned safety. She went to meet with him in his chambers.

"Lord Liu Shan?"

He turned around and smiled, "Xingcai," His smiled faded, "Well, this certainly have taken a turn for the worst."

"Don't say that...We still have a chance, however slight." She replied, he sighed, "I guess...I guess you're right. But everything depends on reinforcements from Wu arriving in time."

She nodded.

"I'm sure they'll make it," She stated, "So, I take it you are going to fight?"

Liu Shan nodded. Xingcai sighed and then made up her mind.

"Well then, I'll be fighting too, I've got everything ready. It's time I made amends for my part in this chaos."

Liu Shan nodded and then finally he sighed and embraced her.

"Whatever happens, stay safe." He whispered, she returned the embrace, "I will, I promise. We'll get through this together."

They separated and headed off to prepare for the upcoming battle, by tomorrow the battle would begin.

Meanwhile Liu Bei and Shangxiang were within their chambers. Shangxiang noticed that Liu Bei was distracted, staring out of the window.

"My Lord?" She questioned him nervously; he turned to face her, "Is something troubling you?"

He lowered his gaze and finally he replied.

"I am concerned, for the fate of my son, for lady Xingcai, for us all." He stated, "What if your father is too late with his reinforcements."

Shangxiang also lowered her head.

"I understand your concern but, we must have faith." She replied, "We are desperate and they are our only hope."

Liu Bei nodded and walked over to her and smiled.

"You are right; we just need to have faith." He stated as he gentled reached out and touched her cheek, she smiled and nodded. "We can't do anything if we're tired, let's get some sleep."

Liu Bei agreed and they prepared for bed. All throughout the castle things were tense. Those that would play a major part in the battle were attempting to sleep and get some rest, hopefully to conserve their strength for the battle the following day. Dong Zhuo, Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao were all prepared and soon their armies were ready too. At dawn the following day they marched a large portion of their army, leaving the rest to guard what they had already claimed. They soon arrived within view of Xuzhou and saw that Liu Bei's army was ready for them; it was time for them to fight. Dong Zhuo's cruel lecherous nature pitted against Liu Bei's benevolence and Liu Shan's true love. It was coming down to a large scale battle were the slightest mistake would spell disaster for the one who made it.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	12. Siege of Xuzhou

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 12 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, here's the next chapter.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, that's cool. Well, read on and see what happens.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Siege of Xuzhou**

With their camps set up the alliance of Dong Zhuo, Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao all arrayed their men and faced the much smaller Liu Bei army, arrayed opposite them, just outside the walls. Dong Zhuo then called out.

"Liu Bei, you rat! How dare you resist me this way?!" He bellowed, Liu Bei glared and replied. "You have attacked my lands, hurt my people and caused countless travesties, why should I not resist you."

Cao-Cao then spoke to Dong Zhuo.

"We must be diplomatic, we may outnumber them, but don't forget who it is we're dealing with and who his officers are." He stated, "Find some means to get our demands met with as minimal losses as possible."

"I never asked your opinion Cao-Cao!" Dong Zhuo snapped but Yuan Shao interceded for his friend, "Cao-Cao's advice is good Dong Zhuo; you'd do well to take it."

Dong Zhuo rounded on Yuan Shao.

"I never said I wasn't going to!" He shot at the Yuan leader before turning to Liu Bei. "Very well, I'm willing to withdraw without causing any further damage, so long as you accept my terms."

Liu Bei glared at him, "And those would be."

"Return Xingcai to me, and surrender that rat Liu Shan who stole her from me." Dong Zhuo declared, "Also, Cao-Cao needs to appease his wrath for the death of his son, so you must surrender Zhang Fei too."

Liu Bei shook his head.

"Your conditions are unacceptable." He stated, Dong Zhuo looked shocked, "What?!"

Liu Bei continued, "I would never give up either of my brothers, nor my son, or the one he has given his heart to, just as she has given her heart to him. If you want them, you will have to fight for them!"

With that both armies prepared for battle.

Combat immediately started with Cao-Cao ordering Cao Ren out to challenge the enemy to a duel, as he charged out Liu Bei sent Guan Yu to fight him. They both duelled and were evenly matched for many bouts, then Yuan Shao ordered Zhang He to advance and in response Liu Bei sent Zhang Fei to meet him. Now the combat was going two for two but still neither side backed down, until Guan Yu and Zhang Fei suddenly retreated and rejoined the ranks with Liu Bei as they all fled back into the castle. Both warriors pursed when suddenly Zhao Yun appeared on the wall and, on his orders the ambush was launched and arrows rained down on the two that had pursued. At the sight of this Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao panicked. However Cao-Cao remained calm and ordered Cao Pi and Xu Huang to go and rescue the pressed officers. They hurried onwards and soon they cut a path through which Cao Ren and Zhang He could flee. Zhang He was disappointed with Yuan Shao's lack of composure and yet amazed at Cao-Cao's calm decision-making. Finally it was decided that they needed to surround the castle on all four sides and to attack and force the defenders out. Li Ru gave the battle plans and so Cao-Cao sent his officer Zhang Liao along with Yue Jin and Li Dian to attack the north gate, he left to attack the south gate, flanked by Dian Wei and Xu Zhu. Cao Pi and Yu Jin were left to guard the camp. Yuan Shao took Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi to attack the east gate with him, leaving Zhang He, Zhenji, Gao Gan and Gao Shun to defend his camp. Finally Dong Zhuo opted to stay in his own camp with Li Ru and sent Lu Bu, Xu Rong and Niu Fu to attack the east gate.

Seeing themselves surrounded Liu Bei split his army into four groups, one for each gate, each was given command of a number of troops as well as defensive weapons. Guan Yu, Guan Ping, Mi Fang and Mi Zhu defended the north gate from Zhang Liao and his allies. Zhang Fei, Liu Shan, Xingcai and Xu Shu defended the east gate from Lu Bu and his allies. The south gate, where Cao-Cao was attacking himself was defended by Zhao Yun, Chen Gui, Chen Deng and Chen Shi. Finally, the west gate was defended by Jian Yong, Sun Qian, Ma Liang and Zhang Bao. Liu Bei and Sun Shangxiang had positioned themselves in the centre of the city, ready to render aid to any of the gates at any given time. The moment the attack began the defenders immediately unleashed a barrage of arrows as well as their ballistae and catapults. The barrage made it impossible for the attackers to get close without suffering heavy losses and they were desperate for some means to claim victory. Dong Zhuo then heard that Xingcai was part of the defending force and decided to end the battle by at least claiming his prize. He rode out and called for a parley with the defenders of the western wall. Zhang Fei, Liu Shan, Xingcai and Xu Shu all stood at the wall ready to hear him.

"I wish to repeat my offer, lady Xingcai!" He called out, "All you need to do if throw down your weapons and come to me, then I will withdraw my troops and we will say no more."

Zhang Fei glared at this.

"You think I'll just hand my daughter over to you!" He bellowed but Xingcai stopped him and spoke herself, "Dong Zhuo, I have no intention of going anywhere near you…There is no marriage between us, my mother is trying to force the issue."

Dong Zhuo glared at this but before he could complain Xingcai cut across him.

"There is only one person who has my heart, and he's here." She stated as Liu Shan grasped her hand, "So, come and attack all you want, we will fight to the bitter end."

With that the onslaught started back up and Dong Zhuo fled back to his tent in a panic, being wounded in the arm by an arrow.

Still in a panic and obviously realizing he was getting nowhere Dong Zhuo recalled his army and the west gate was cleared of enemies. Guan Yu meanwhile had ordered the defense weapons of the north gate stop firing and he waited until the commander of the attack there, Zhang Liao, was within earshot.

"Zhang Liao!" He bellowed, the attackers stopped and Zhang Liao looked up at Guan Yu, "You are a man of honour, yet you attack us."

"I am my lord's blade, Guan Yu," Zhang Liao replied, "I shall attack when he orders me too, only that way can I uphold my honour."

"But is there any honour in a battle like this?" Guan Yu questioned, "Or are you simply being used to further your lord's petty desire for revenge?"

These words struck deep and shamed Zhang Liao who immediately ordered a retreat and returned his army to the camp, freeing the north gate. The south and east gates were still under siege however and Cao-Cao wasn't relinquishing his position.

"We will wear them down," He stated, "They cannot keep this up forever."

Just then Dain Wei bellowed, "My lord, look out!"

Cao-Cao found himself pushed aside as Dian Wei was struck in the shoulder with an arrow.

"My lord, Dian Wei!" Xu Zhu stepped forwards, club raised in defense. It then became clear they were being attacked from behind.

After a moment they spotted their attackers, they all rode under a red banner, it was Wu. Sun Jian had arrived and was leading and army to aid Liu Bei. Accompanying him were his sons Ce and Quan. Also present was their wives, Daqiao and Lianshi, veteran officers Huang Gai and Ding Feng, Sun Ce's sworn brother and Wu's master tactician, Zhou Yu and Sun Quan's bodyguard Zhou Tai. They were accompanied by other officers, such as Cheng Pu, Han Dang, Zu Mao, Zhu Zhi, Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong. This large army charged directly into the rear of Cao-Cao's unit and forced him and his men to flee, freeing the south gate. Now only the east gate was under attack, however news of the reinforcements from Wu had caused Yuan Shao to order a retreat, lifting the siege.

The Wu forces entered the city and were greeted by Liu Bei, the rest of the Wu army also arrived and soon both armies took up refuge both within the city and in a stockade built around it and formed an ironclad defense. Despite repeated attempts to break it the triple alliance was unable to make much headway. Yuan Shao had even sent Zhenji to make an assassination attempt on Sun Quan but she was thwarted by Zhou Tai and forced to flee. Enraged by her failure and the lack of sympathy from her lord and her husband she subsequently terminated her marriage to Yuan Xi and left the Yuan camp, joining Cao-Cao's where Cao Pi took her in and sheltered her while she recovered from the injuries Zhou Tai gave her. It soon became apparent that it would be impossible to starve Liu Bei and his army out as they had plentiful supplies, as did Sun Jian and both armies shared supplies. The triple alliance however was running low on supplies so Dong Zhou decided to raid some of the nearby villages. Various contingents went to the villages to make their raids. Dong Zhuo then ordered Lu Bu to take some officers and men with him and raid another nearby village. Mounting his infamous Red Hare steed, Lu Bu gathered his men and headed for the village, unaware that he was about to have a life changing encounter.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	13. Village Assault

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 13 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, here is the next chapter.  
Diao Chan: Well, the answers lie below. Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Village Assault**

Lu Bu rode forward on his Red Hare steed and stopped. Arrayed around him were his captains. Gao Shun, Hou Cheng, Song Xian, Wei Xu, Cao Xing and Zang Ba. Together with a company of men armed with swords, spears and bows, they overlooked the village they were to raid.

Lu Bu grunted, "This is a waste of my time, still, if it get us supplies and shuts Dong Zhuo up, then let's get it over with."

They charged into the village and were soon spotted by some of the peasants who lived there. They panicked and began to run, shouting.

"Argh…Thieves; they've come to attack us!" They were silenced however when the archers opened fire upon them.

It was too late however, the warning had been given and now at least five groups of peasants had appeared, all armed and each with a definite leader.

"Out of my way maggots!" Lu Bu bellowed, but the peasants stood firm, "This is our land, you will not destroy it."

"Then simply hand over some food and we'll be on our way." Lu Bu replied, but instead one of the peasants charged only to be killed with one strike of Lu Bu's halberd, "Weakling!"

The other groups of peasants had scattered throughout the village. Lu Bu turned to his men and gave his orders.

"Ravage the village, claim any and all supplies. If any of these fools resist you, kill them. Those that surrender can be taken prisoner. Inform me as soon as we have access to the Elder's house."

They all bowed and charged out to carry out their orders.

It wasn't long before the village was in an uproar, several peasants were killed and vast quantities of supplies fell into the hands of the attackers. Suddenly however Lu Bu received a report that two men, leading a body of troops had been spotted and were attacking Lu Bu's forces. He decided to deal with them himself and charged out to where they were last seen. He realized that he recognized one of the Interlopers; it was Liao Hua, who had fought in the tournament. He was accompanied by another man whom he addressed as Zhou Cang. It was then Liao Hua saw Lu Bu.

"Lu Bu!" He bellowed, "So you are behind this, I can't believe you've sunk so low."

Lu Bu simply smirked, "If I wanted your opinion, scum, I would've asked for it." Liao Hua simply glared but then Zhou Cang spoke up, "So Lu Bu is in charge of this attack, well, I guess there is only one option for us, crazy as it may be."

Liao Hua nodded in agreement and together they both charged Lu Bu. Lu Bu however knew they were no match for him, even together. He blocked their combined strikes and pushed them back before sweeping his halberd in a wide arc, knocking them both off their horses.

"Pathetic, you better flee now, while you still can." He stated, Zhou Cang growled but was held back by Liao Hua, "You may have won the day Lu Bu, but soon, things will change."

With that they both fled, taking their men with them. Lu Bu's army returned to ravaging the village.

Finally Cao Xing came and reported to Lu Bu that they had access to the Village Elder's house. Lu Bu rode to the house, dismounted and headed up the large stairway which led to the house courtyard. There he saw the Village Elder and an elderly court official, the court official stepped forwards.

"Hold there, that is enough." He stated, "We know of your strength Lu Bu, I have spoken with the elder and he will see to it that his people see reason."

The Elder bowed, "Please Lord Lu Bu, refrain from hurting my people anymore, I will give the word and we shall all surrender."

Lu Bu nodded, "Fine, this all could've been avoided if you simply handed over the food in the first place."

"Lu Bu, you do not…" The elderly official stepped forwards to speak but Lu Bu thrust his halberd forwards, the tip resting a mere inch from the man's neck. "Just who do you think you are?"

"I am Wang Yun of the Imperial Court," He replied, "I meant no disrespect, I…"

"Get away from him!" A female voice suddenly shouted.

Taken by surprise Lu Bu only barely blocked the attack, he blocked the second too, noting that his opponent was fighting with chain whip. It was then he saw her face and he froze, struck but such incredible beauty it could melt even the coldest of hearts. The distraction however allowed the woman to catch him off guard with a kick to the stomach. He staggered back and regained his composure as she struck again. This time he got her whip tangled on his halberd and wrenched it out of her grasp, forcing her onto her knees at the same time. He stepped forwards and put his halberd aside as he gently used his hand to lift her face up to look at him.

He was immediately captivated by the beautiful maiden.

"Who…are you?" He asked finally as she stared back at him, she spoke softly, perhaps even fearfully, "Diaochan."

Lu Bu nodded and helped her to her feet, surprising her.

"Lady Diaochan, what are you doing in a place like this?" He asked, it was Wang Yun who answered, "I adopted her when she was but a child, she has been my daughter ever since, she implored me to let her accompany me here."

Lu Bu nodded, Wang Yun walked forwards cautiously before speaking again.

"I care not what happens to me Lord Lu Bu…But please promise me, that you will ensure Diaochan's safety." Lu Bu did not break his gaze from Diaochan, but his answer was sincere, "You have my word, I will keep her safe."

Lu Bu then issued orders to stand down, the village surrendered and Dong Zhuo came in person to pick up the supplies which had been gathered at the Elder's house. The Elder and Wang Yun stood alongside them. Lu Bu stood to the side with Diaochan next to him.

Dong Zhuo arrived with a wide smirk on his face.

"So, everything is here is it?" He questioned, the elder nodded, "Yes, this is all of it."

"Fine, fine," Dong Zhuo replied as his men began to move everything away, "I still can't believe you were foolish enough to resist, think how many lives were wasted here, because of your foolishness."

"Or your tyranny," Wang Yun replied, "None of this would have happened if you had not attacked the village."

Dong Zhuo glared at Wang Yun.

"What's that, you dare insult me, you fool!" Dong Zhuo bellowed and, in a fit of rage drew the sword he wore at his waist, the Seven Star Sword and killed Wang Yun with a fatal thrust through the stomach.

Diaochan cried out in despair but Lu Bu held her back. Dong Zhuo, still smirking left, as did the soldiers. It was then Lu Bu let Diaochan go and she rushed to her father's side. The Village Elder and his people all gathered around too.

"Father." She breathed through he tears, Wang Yun weakly reached up and managed to grasp her shoulder, "Diaochan…I'm, sorry…"

Those were his last words and death welcomed him. Diaochan lowered her head and let her tears fall. Lu Bu, moved by this walked over to her and knelt down. He looked at the old man and sighed before reaching out and respectfully closing his eyes. He then embraced Diaochan as she cried into his chest. Finally, he led her away from the scene of torment and helped her mount Red Hare before climbing on himself. Together they rode away, silent, both thinking about what had just occurred.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	14. Second Battle of Xia Pi

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 14 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Diao Lover: Yup, you were right, well, it's not that unexpected given that Dong Zhuo was there, but yes, it was quite sad, especially for Diao Chan.  
Wolfgirl77769: Yeah, it's sad, however, Lu Bu will keep his promise, so at least she'll be safe.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Oh well, you've reviewed now, thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Second Battle of Xia Pi**

Following the ravaging of the village Lu Bu took Diaochan to his own tent in the camp and let her sleep, he opted to stay up all night to keep and eye on her, not trusting any of the other men. Meanwhile, within the stockade built by the Wu forces, they were holding a council to determine their next course of action.

"We cannot stay on the defensive forever." Sun Jian stated, "If we do we will be overwhelmed, we have to take offensive action."

There was some whispered discussion between his retainers until finally Sun Ce spoke up.

"Father, let's take Xia Pi from Cao-Cao." He stated, "We can push on of the attacking out of Xu and we can reclaim the castle and use it as a base."

Quan however interrupted, "Cao-Cao is no fool, brother, he'll be ready for an attack." Ce nodded, "I know that, but we still have a chance, especially if we attack quickly tonight."

Sun Jian nodded.

"Ce, Quan, you both raise good points, we'll just have to be cautious and attack swiftly under the cover of darkness, if start to go wrong however, we have to be ready to pull back at once."

So it was agreed that a detachment of the Wu army, led by Sun Ce, would attack Xia Pi and try to free it from Cao-Cao's grip.

Cao-Cao himself was not present at Xia Pi as he was back in Yan Province gathering more of his army for a second assault on Xuzhuo. As such when Sun Ce led his army to launch a night raid on Xia Pi, it was Cao Pi who was in charge of the castle, along with his new wife, the elegant Zhenji, who had swapped her yellow and orange outfit for a similar one in blue and black, symbolizing her changed allegiance. Also defending the castle was Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Li Dian, Man Chong and Yu Jin. Sun Ce mobilized his forces.

"Okay, how should we do this Zhou Yu?" He asked his close friend, the strategist smiled and laid out the plan. "You and Ding Feng should attack the north gate, I shall attack the south with Han Dang, Huang Gai and Cheng Pu should attack the west. That way we will force them out the eastern gate. Zhu Zhi, Zu Mao, Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong can hide ambush units there to attack them as they come out."

Sun Ce nodded, "I see, sounds good." Zhou Yu then replied, "Yes, it is a little simplistic, but it will serve for this battle."

So the army prepared itself and got into their designated divisions and took position, ready to attack. Then, with drums pounding and horns blaring they charged the castle.

The attack took the defenders by surprise and soon word was brought to Cao Pi.

"I should've known they'd have tried something like this. When he heard there were only three gates under attack he decided to send the two Xiahou's to the free gate to secure it and to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. He then sent Cao Ren to the south gate with Li Dian, Zhang Liao and Yu Jin guarded the north while the west gate was guarded by Xu Huang and Man Chong. Almost as soon as the battle began Sun Ce called out to the defenders of the north gate.

"C'mon, is there no man amongst you willing to take me on?!" In response a lone figure jumped from the wall and landed in front of the gate, now blasted open by the Wu attacks.

The figure who jumped down was Zhang Liao and he held his twin axes in a cross formation in front of himself.

"Sun Ce!" He cried, "I will accept your challenge."

Sun Ce smirked, pleased to have such a strong opponent and soon he charged in to attack. Their weapons locked as both fighters attempted to push the other off balance. Finally they broke apart, Zhang Liao attacked but Sun Ce either blocked or dodged the attacks before launching some of his own, like wise Zhang Liao blocked or dodged them. The duel continued until it became clear that neither of them could overpower the other, so Zhang Liao retreated back into the castle and rejoined the ranks of his allies at the shattered gate. They stood firm, ready to meet Sun Ce's direct attack. Sun Ce charged in and, with his men, attacked, attempting to force the enemy to flee, just as Zhou Yu planned. Finally they broke through and Zhang Liao and his forces were made to flee back to the central square where Cao Pi and Zhenji were stationed.

Huang Gai meanwhile was putting forward all his might and using flaming arrows to compound the damage as he attacked the west gate. Xu Huang however continued to fight on, Huang Gai was impressed.

"I must admit, Xu Huang, I have never seen a man fight so hard in such a desperate situation." He called out.

Xu Huang heard the comment and replied.

"I must commend you on your combination of might and logic, Huang Gai." He called back, "But I am determined to walk the path of the warrior to its pinnacle, so such an obstacle as this, is just what I was hoping to encounter."

Huang Gai laughed at this and decided to increase the pressure. He ordered his men to start using catapults in addition to flaming arrows and ballistae. Finally they broke through the gate and Xu Huang made a desperate final stand but the Wu forces poured in.

"We will not last hear," He pondered out loud, "And I've already heard that Zhang Liao has been forced to retreat."

So, deciding to cut his losses Xu Huang also retreated back to the central square.

Zhou Yu however wasn't having as much luck as his comrades. Every siege weapon he used was countered and every attempt to storm the gates or climb the walls was thwarted. The enemy guarded the gate and held it tightly like a wall of iron.

'_I see the reputation Cao Ren has at being unbeatable at defense is not to be taken lightly.'_ Zhou Yu thought, _'At this rate I will never break through.'_

Just then a messenger appeared and reported that the two Xiahou's had observed the countryside from the east wall and had spotted the ambush, they had warned Cao Pi and, using smoke signals had sent a message requesting reinforcements to Cao-Cao's main force and the other two allied forces.

"No, at this rate we will be overrun." Zhou Yu realized as Cao Ren appeared at the wall, "Your ambush has thwarted Zhou Yu, this is down to bad luck on your part, but now you have no hope of victory!"

Zhou Yu growled but knew there was no other choice, he ordered the retreat and also sent messengers to warn Sun Ce and Huang Gai. So the Wu army retreated, they had been unable to claim Xia Pi from Cao-Cao but they had escaped with their lives and very few casualties compared to Cao-Cao's army which was badly damaged by the attack. All they could do now was wait and prepare for the next attack. It was clear from the increase in enemy troops that after three months of waiting, besieging and making no progress the triple alliance was prepared to make the next battle the last.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	15. Eve of the Final Battle

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 15 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, well, just wait and see :)  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks ,glad you enjoyed it, the next battle will take place next chapter, it's gonna be big.  
Diao Lover: Yeah, it's a shame, but c'mon, they were up against Cao Ren, thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Eve of the Final Battle**

It was late at night, after three months of attempting to besiege Xuzhuo it was no closer to falling. The Triple Alliance of Dong Zhuo, Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao was growing desperate, they had called a lot more of their officers and troops. They fully intended to make the next battle the last and to topple Xuzhuo, Liu Bei's army and their Wu allies. In Cao-Cao's camp Cao-Cao himself stood observing Xuzhuo. He was flanked by Dian Wei and Xu Zhu. Xiahou Dun approached them.

"My lord, our army is ready." He explained, Cao-Cao nodded absently before voicing his thoughts. "Who could have thought, that such a small castle, could hold back such a large force."

Xiahou Dun nodded, "The defenders in it are resolute, they wish to uphold their ways and will fight to bitter end for them. That makes them nearly invincible, but not quite."

Cao-Cao agreed, "Yes, we will break them this time."

With that they returned to camp to prepare for the battle the following day. Meanwhile Cao Pi and Zhenji sat just outside his tent, observing the moonlight.

"Such a shame," Zhenji stated, "To have such a beautiful night, and yet be preoccupied by the thought of battle in the morning."

Cao Pi gave a dry chuckle.

"But Zhen, tomorrow night, will likely be just as beautiful, and yet…There will be nothing to preoccupy us." Zhenji laughed, "I can't wait my lord."

They both continued their stargazing until late.

In the Wu encampment Sun Jian sat with his sons. Sun Ce was enraged at his failure.

"Dammit, if it hadn't been for Cao Ren we would've claimed Xia Pi." He declared, Sun Jian shook his head, "You did all you could my boy, how were we to know that such a master of defensive battles was present."

Quan nodded, "Father's right, what matters is you are still alive brother."

Ce nodded and calmed down.

"Thanks Quan, father, I guess I better get ready for tomorrow, you can bet they'll hit us hard."

Ce left the tent and Quan turned to his father.

"He's right, they won't let this slide, they hit us hard and with everything they've got tomorrow."

"I know that," Sun Jian stated, "We've done all we can with the defenses, all we can do, is hold out and look for an opening. Yuan Shao, Dong Zhuo, Cao-Cao, defeating or killing any one of these three will force that army to retreat."

Quan nodded, "And give us some breathing room."

"You should rest my son; tomorrow will be a dangerous day." Sun Quan nodded and left the tent as Sun Jian also prepared to retire for the night.

After leaving his fathers tent Sun Ce ran into his close friend Zhou Yu.

"Hey Zhou Yu, you okay?" He asked, Zhou Yu nodded, "The only Cao Ren has damaged is my pride."

"Well don't worry, we'll get him eventually."

Zhou Yu nodded, "I'll be sure to cover as much of our defensive strategy for tomorrow as possible, so just leave everything to me."

"Right, well, we better go get some rest, if we're tired tomorrow we're not gonna put up much of a fight."

With that Sun Ce left. Zhou Yu turned his gaze to the enemy's encampments. Cao-Cao's camp only had the flames from the guard's torches lit, the army clearly resting for battle. In Yuan Shao's camp the guard's torches were lit but so were four of the tents, the occupants clearly still awake. Zhou Yu identified the tents as belonging to Yuan Shao's three sons and Zhang He, but he could not comprehend why they would be awake. Finally Dong Zhuo's camp was lit up brightly as the sounds of revelry and merriment could be heard.

'_The fool, how does he expect to win the battle if his men are fuddled with wine and lack of sleep?'_ Zhou Yu thought sharply.

Only one tent was in darkness, the occupant clearly asleep, Zhou Yu noted, to his dismay, it was Lu Bu's tent. So Lu Bu would be fresh for tomorrow's battle and would be fighting at his best. Shaking his head Zhou Yu finally headed to his tent to get some rest.

In Xuzhou, Liu Bei stood at the window looking out at the enemy armies assembled.

'_Can we really win?'_ He wondered, _'The enemy hordes are vast but still, we have to win, it is our only choice, it's that, or death.'_

"Liu Bei."

He turned and smiled softly as he saw Shangxiang standing before him, looking concerned.

"Is everything alright?" She asked, he nodded, "Everything's fine, at least now it is. Tomorrow will be the day we fight and beat back Dong Zhuo and his allies, or die in the attempt."

"Yes." Shangxiang agreed, "No matter what happens, I'm with you my lord, to the very end."

"Thank you my lady." Liu Bei remarked happily as they kissed, "We should rest now, tomorrow will be most strenuous."

Shangxiang agreed and together they headed for bed. As they drifted off to sleep together Liu Bei thought once more about the situation.

'_So many lives depending on me, Shangxiang, my son, Xingcai, all the people of Xuzhuo. I cannot let them down.'_

So, with renewed determination, Liu Bei was ready to face the upcoming battle.

Liu Shan was already prepared for bed when he heard a knock at his door.

"Come in." He called out.

To his surprise, it was Xingcai, dressed in a simple, dark green robe.

"Xingcai?" She gave him a small smile, "Sorry for intruding." He shook his head. "It's fine, really."

She sighed and then walked over to him.

"I just can't sleep." She declared finally, "I keep thinking, about tomorrow, about the upcoming battle. What will happen to us?"

Liu Shan nodded, "I'm the same, I've been those same things, we have to make the most of now, I think." He sighed, "Who knows what will happen to us, our only choice is to resist until the very end."

Xingcai smiled at this and kissed him before whispering.

"You're right, we have to make the most of now."

They then kissed again, more passionately this time before Xingcai moved forwards, causing Liu Shan to stumble back into the bed. He fell back onto the bed, pulling Xingcai with him as their lips still met in passionate embrace.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	16. Second Battle of Xuzhuo

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 16 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Yeah, of course it should be obvious what happened after it too :)  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, keep reading my friend :)  
Diao Lover: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, of course it should be obvious what just happened with Liu Shan and Xingcai.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Second Battle of Xuzhuo**

The day brought with it the sounds of battle. Liu Bei and his men had taken their positions along the walls of Xuzhuo while Sun Jian and the Wu forces took up their positions in the stockade around the city. Opposite them the Triple Alliance had called forth a vast number of their troops and officers and had encircled the entire city, all ready to give battle. Dong Zhuo rode forwards and made his announcement.

"Liu Bei, this is your last chance!" He bellowed, "I've been more than reasonable, surrender and hand over the people I have mentioned, or face certain death!"

There was no reply so Dong Zhuo continued with his tirade, this time addressing the Wu troops.

"Sun Jian, you help this miserable rat for no reason, you have no quarrel with me!" He stated, "Why then must you waste your life and the life of your men in meaningless conflict."

Sun Jian then called back.

"I owe Liu Bei assistance, it is the duty of those who are related to assist each other and since Liu Bei is my son in law, I am obligated to assist him in his time of need."

Dong Zhuo growled.

"This is your last warning!" He cried, the response he got was not one he had been expecting, a shower of arrows.

He retreated back to within his lines and gave the order, the horns sounded and the battle began.

The Triple Alliance had divided their army to attack all four gates at once, but first had to go through the Wu forces. Dong Zhuo and his men were attacking the west and north gates while Yuan Shao took the east and Cao-Cao the south. At the south gate the Wu forces were led by Zhou Yu.

"Everybody, push the enemy back, do not give them even the slightest opening." He called out as the armies clashed.

As they fought however Zhou Yu spotted Cao Ren amongst the enemy forces.

He charged forwards and challenged the powerful officer, "Cao Ren, I shall repay you for that disgrace you gave me at Xia Pi. Come and face me!"

Cao Ren accepted the challenged and charged to meet Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu's skill with his staff was deadly but Cao Ren's armour and skill with the flail meant that Zhou Yu had to put forth a lot of effort. However it soon became apparent that both armies were tiring and so they pulled back and reformed their ranks. Cao-Cao then called out for a challenge between champions and sent out Xu Huang to attack, Zhou Yu sent out the veteran warrior Zu Mao to respond. However, skilled as he was Zu Mao was unable to defeat Xu Huang, he was able to hold out for quite some time but Xu Huang finally killed him and won the duel. The Cao-Cao army then charged and Zhou Yu was forced onto the defensive.

Sun Ce was fighting diligently with his men, Ding Feng fought alongside him. They were vastly outnumbered by the Yuan army however and no matter how many they killed, more and more seemed to appear.

"Things aren't looking too good for us Ding Feng." Sun Ce stated, Ding Feng nodded, "We are like a flickering flame in a violent gale, but we must hold out."

Sun Ce nodded and they continued to fight, but it was clear they were losing ground and had to work desperately to recover from it. Meanwhile Sun Quan was defending the north gate from part of Dong Zhuo's army.

"We must keep holding on, wait for an opening to present itself!" He called out; his men rallied and continued their defense.

The one in charge of the attack on the north gate, Li Su was growing impatient.

"Enough of this," He growled, "Archers, fire on Sun Quan!"

With that order the arrows flew, Sun Quan saw them but knew he wouldn't be able to dodge them in time.

'_Is this the end?'_ Suddenly a deep voice yelled out, "My lord!"

The arrows struck, but Sun Quan was unharmed. They had struck Zhou Tai, wounding him.

"Zhou Tai!" Quan gasped as his faithful bodyguard staggered and groaned, "I'm fine…my lord…I…"

He sank to his knees, too injured to continue fighting, as the battle raged on.

Sun Jian and Huang Gai were defending the west gate from Dong Zhuo's main force.

"My lord, I've just received word from the other gates." Huang Gai stated as he explained the situation.

"This does not bode well for us." Sun Jian stated, "We'll need to come up with some sort of plan to get out of this mess."

Another soldier came and reported and Huang Gai passed the message on.

"Liu Bei has attempted time and time again to try and send us reinforcements but the enemy archers are repelling all his attempts."

"The enemy know what they are doing then." Sun Jian sighed, "Who knows what they have in store for us."

Evan as he said these words the enemy charged forwards again; together they joined their men and fought back against the enemy.

"Rally to me!" Sun Jian yelled, "It is time for us to show our claws my tigers, let the enemy feel our fury!"

His army cheered as he spurred them on. However at that moment Li Ru was surveying the battlefield and spotted Sun Jian's position.

"The fool; ambush unit, advance!" He yelled.

The ambush unit suddenly appeared and began attack, throwing Sun Jian's forces into confusion. Taking advantage of this the archers fired and suddenly Sun Jian fell from his horse, struck by arrows.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	17. Wu's Retreat

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 17 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl777769: Thanks, she will fight but at the moment she's still in bed with Liu Shan.  
Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, actually the only person who's dead right now is Zu Mao.  
Diao Lover: Just wait and see, and no Sun Quan is not going to die, simple as that.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Wu's Retreat**

Cries of dismay rose up as Sun Jian hit the ground. With great ferocity Huang Gai charged into the enemy horde and, wielding his anchor shaped club in one hand, carried his lord over his shoulder, out of the battle. The Wu army was beaten back and the attackers retired to plan their next move. Sun Jian and Zhou Tai were both gravely wounded and it was clear they could no longer fight. With Zu Mao's death in addition to the two casualties Wu's morale was low. With his father incapacitated Sun Ce was put in command of the Wu forces, he bid the others to wait and went into his tent to consult privately with Zhou Yu.

"What am I to do Zhou Yu?" He asked, "After everything that's happened, the men don't have the heart to go on fighting…But if we flee, we're abandoning Liu Bei."

Zhou Yu shook his head sadly.

"I'm afraid there is nothing else we can do Sun Ce. We'll have to apologize to Liu Bei and flee; otherwise, Wu has no future."

Sun Ce sighed, "I guess you're right, okay, pass the order around, we're heading for home and send a message to Liu Bei."

"At once."

With that they both left the tent and preparations got underway.

Meanwhile, within Xu Liu Shan woke up and realized that he had slept in; he had missed the start of the battle. As he moved he heard some slightly moaning and remembered the events of last night.

"Liu Shan?" Xingcai asked, still half asleep, "Xingcai, the battle's already started, we need to hurry."

"What, right, let's go!?"

They got out of bed and quickly got dressed and grabbed their weapons, Liu Shan looked over and Xingcai, after making eye contact they were both awkward as finally Liu Shan spoke.

"We probably shouldn't mention this to anyone?" He stated, she nodded and together they hurried to the walls.

As they arrived they found Liu Bei, worried.

"Father?" Liu Shan asked, concerned, Liu Bei looked up, "I see you've both decided to join us."

They both blushed but said nothing; Liu Bei's expression went grim again.

"Wu has taken heavy damage and is being forced to retreat; they are going to retreat back home, so they have to break though Cao-Cao's army, if they do so, it may weaken that army, making it a little easier for us."

Just then there was a commotion to the north, Guan Yu was posted at the north gate and could see two warriors leading their armies to break through the Dong Zhuo army there. Seeing the intent of these two Guan Yu ordered that the gates be opened to allow them entry. Once inside the gates were closed behind them and they went to Liu Bei to make obeisance and greetings. They introduced themselves as Liao Hua and Zhou Cang and promised to aid Liu Bei. Liu Bei accepted their help gladly as the Wu army began their retreat. They maintained a disciplined withdrawal and left their stockade standing to provide an extra defense for Xuzhou's walls.

With Sun Ce leading from the front and Zhou Yu bringing up the rear the Wu army retreated, the two wounded officers were placed in the centre with the rest of the army to defend them as they left. They soon approached Cao-Cao's camp but found it suspiciously undermanned.

"Great, there's probably an ambush."

The words were no sooner out of Sun Ce's mouth before Cao-Cao's army struck and attacked from where they had been hidden and the Wu army was forced to fight as they fled through the camps. Soon however, two Wu strategists, Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong were injured, as was the veteran warrior Han Dang. Sun Ce sent them on ahead after he cleared a path through the camps. After they fled Sun Ce ushered on the rest of the army as he guarded the route he had made. Lianshi, Huang Gai and Sun Quan finally made it to safety along with most of the army; Sun Ce then called out to Zhou Yu.

"Hey, Zhou Yu, c'mon, we gotta go!" Zhou Yu then called back, "Go on ahead Sun Ce, I will need Cheng Pu and Ding Feng to assist me, we are going to lay a trap for the enemy and then flee."

"Okay, but be careful I don't wanna lose you too."

With that Sun Ce rode away and the three Wu officers fought of their attackers and, following Zhou Yu's direction, set the trap before finally fleeing.

Having witnessed all of this Liu Bei noticed that Sun Shangxiang was standing next to him.

"I'm sorry my lady, I should've let you go with them." He stated, but she shook her head, "No my lord, my place is here with you."

It was then a conflagration caught their attention as Cao-Cao's central camps caught fire due to Zhou Yu's trap. So the Wu army got away as Cao-Cao turned his attention to extinguishing the fire. But now all that was left to resist the Triple Alliance was the forces within Xuzhuo itself. The Triple Alliance leaders met in Dong Zhuo's tent to discuss the next part of their plan.

"We can still end this with minimal bloodshed." Yuan Shao stated, but Dong Zhuo snorted, "So, they resisted me so they are all going to die."

"I say it's better to challenge them to a duel, with the loser being forced to surrender, unless some sort of interference ends the duel prematurely." Cao-Cao stated.

Pleased with Cao-Cao's suggestion Dong Zhuo agreed to try and so sent a messenger to relay the challenge for the duel. However the messenger secretly sympathized with the besieged army and their plight and told Liu Bei of the condition that would allow them to escape surrender if the duel started to go against them. Liu Bei thanked the messenger and after he left he gathered his officers.

"There is only one man Dong Zhuo will use in this sort of situation." Liu Bei stated, "Lu Bu, we have to try and resist him somehow."

"I'll face him!" Zhang Fei offered at once but he was interrupted, "No father, I will."

It was Xingcai, everyone was shocked, especially Liu Shan and Zhang Fei.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine, I have a plan." She stated before turning to Liu Bei, "Lord Liu Bei, for my plan to work, I'll need Liu Shan and Guan Ping to come with me, as well as the usual body of troops."

Liu Bei nodded, "Of course, I just hope this works."

So, with their preparations made the trio got ready to head out. They heard Lu Bu at the gates challenging them and so they rode out of the open gate. Lu Bu was there, mounted on Red Hare and brandishing his halberd. Within his ranks were representatives from the other two armies, Yan Liang and Zhang Liao. Xingcai nodded to the other two and they all prepared to follow the plan she had set up as they took their positions.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	18. Xuzhuo Overrun

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 18 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Phil The Persona Guy: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah, well, her plan will soon come to fruition.  
Diao Lover: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, here's the next chapter :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

* * *

**Xuzhuo Overrun**

Lu Bu glared when he saw his opponent for the duel.

"So, the one who all this is about comes to fight me." He stated, "Well, at least I know you are more than capable of fighting me, woman."

Dong Zhuo, who was watching with the other two commanders, was shocked to see Xingcai there.

"What is going on here?" Lu Bu, you cannot harm her." He called out, "So, finally you've come."

Xingcai glared disgustedly, "Don't you get it, I'm here to fight, I can't put it any stronger, I'd rather die than let you anywhere near me."

"Ah, but you are forgetting my dear," He replied with his usual lecherous grin, "You are mine by right, and I always get what I want."

Xingcai smirked, "Not this time."

With that she readied her sword and shield and rode out to battle. Lu Bu also rode out and the two immediately began duelling. They fought several bouts evenly matched with no advantage to either side.

"So, you have your father's talent!" Lu Bu snarled, "But even he isn't strong enough to beat me."

Xingcai did not reply and instead continued to fight. It was then however that another voice sounded.

"Behold, I shall be your opponent!"

Out of nowhere Guan Ping had charged in with his broadsword and joined in the duel.

Dong Zhuo was shocked at this.

"What is this?! They are still fighting." He declared, "They have violated the agreement and have no right to fight anymore, they must surrender."

Cao-Cao shook his head, "No Dong Zhuo, this is what I spoke about remember, this interference means the duel is over, without a winner or loser."

Yuan Shao nodded.

"As such the agreement is void." Dong Zhuo snarled, "Curse them, what are your officers doing, get one of them out there now!"

Yuan Shao gave the order to Yan Liang to advance but as he stared to do so Lu Bu noticed.

"Get back scum!" He bellowed, "I am fighting this alone, if I wanted your help, I would have asked for it!"

"My lord has ordered me…" Yan Liang began but Lu Bu cut across him, "To hell with your lord's orders, this is _MY _battle!"

With that Yan Liang had no choice but to fall back and reform his ranks. Then Lu Bu found himself with three opponents as Liu Shan joined the duel. The three opponents circled Lu Bu and forced him onto the defensive, following orders from the lords, Yan Liang and Zhang Liao tried to go to Lu Bu's aid but he still refused.

"We cannot go back Lu Bu." Zhang Liao tried to explain but Lu Bu's thunderous roar was heard by all present, "You will leave me to fight this battle alone, or I will kill you myself!"

With that Cao-Cao and Yuan Shao called off their officers. After duelling some more it was clear that Lu Bu had no hope of victory so he feinted and then retreated. The trio led their victorious army back within the gates.

After seeing Lu Bu in a rage over his defeat Dong Zhuo sent him to his tent to calm down, which he was able to thanks to Diaochan. Dong Zhou then ordered a full scale attack around the entire city again. However they still had to break through the Wu stockade that had been built and by the time they finally broke it down they had endured heavy barrages from the defenders. Xun Yu and Xun You of Cao-Cao's army, Yuan Xi and Dong Zhuo's officer Li Jue were all injured and forced to return to the camps for medical treatment. Finally however, despite the desperate defense and several officers making desperate sorties Xuzhuo was overrun with the enemy breaking through the gates. Most of Liu Bei's officers fled for the hills, having been worsted in battle. Liu Bei and his army desperately fled, attempting to escape. Liu Bei, his sworn brothers and Liu Shan had already escaped the city, along with several peasants who had formed a militia to help the soldiers out. They got free of the press and secured an escape route just as they saw Zhao Yun and Xu Shu break free and join them.

"Where is lady Shangxiang and lady Xingcai?" Liu Bei asked, Zhao Yun shook his head, "I was separated from them, I have no idea where they are."

Zhang Fei and Liu Shan both fretted over Xingcai's safety and, despite the danger Liu Bei decided to wait for them.

Within Xuzhuo, Sun Shangxiang and Xingcai were still fighting to get out. They could see the exit they were planning to take but it was blocked by soldiers.

"Xingcai, listen," Shangxiang stated, "I will distract them, then you escape okay."

Xingcai shook her head, "I can't do that, Shangxiang you…" Shangxiang smiled, "I'll be fine, remember, it's you they want."

Unable to argue any further Xingcai agreed and Shangxiang stepped out, in full view of the soldiers.

"Hey, all of you, come and face the 'Bow Princess' if you dare." She called out before running away from the gate, the guards immediately gave pursuit and Xingcai escaped.

When Xingcai escaped she saw Liu Bei and the others and joined up with them, she told them of Shangxiang's sacrifice and Liu Bei, although pained, knew they could not wait any longer.

"We have to go, now." He stated, before looking over at the castle, "Shangxiang, I pray for your safety."

With that they fled.

Shangxiang meanwhile had put up a brave fight but had finally been taken prisoner and was brought, bound and gagged, before the three leaders of the alliance.

"My, my, what an exquisite beauty." Dong Zhuo remarked with a slimy grin, but Yuan Shao cut him off, "Dong Zhuo, you already have a woman you are pursuing, but since my son Xi had his wife stolen from him…"

With that Yuan Shao glared at Cao Pi who smirked.

"…I suggest that we take this woman as his new wife."

Dong Zhuo laughed.

"Do whatever you want, I'm already prepared to go and make Xingcai mine."

With that Yuan Shao took Shangxiang and led his army back to his own territory. Dong Zhuo sent the bulk of his army to the domains he controlled, as did Cao-Cao who also got Xu as a reward and set up some of his own people there before heading home. Dong Zhuo then gathered together the troops he had kept. Along with them he had kept several officers with him; Lu Bu, Gao Shun, Dong Min, Li Ru, Li Su, Hua Xiong, Xu Rong and Niu Fu. With them he went in pursuit of Liu Bei's fleeing army, desperate to capture Xingcai.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	19. Incident at Ru Nan

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 19 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Phil The Persona Guy: Sun Jian is currently comatose and even if he wasn't he couldn't do anything about it. Besides, there will be bigger problems in his chapter, read on to find out.  
Diao Lover: Anything's better than being Dong Zhuo's prisoner, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Incident at Ru Nan**

Liu Bei gathered together what few followers he had left. His fighting forces consisted of only one hundred soldiers and up to five hundred peasant militia. Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Liu Shan, Zhao Yun, Xingcai and Xu Shu were the only officers with him. He knew all the others were scattered, most of the troops were dead. Finally he looked around the area they were in.

"Where are we?" He wondered aloud, Guan Yu was the one who answered. "I believe this to be Ru Nan in Yu Province, brother."

Zhang Fei stepped forwards, "Yu province is unoccupied by any regional lord. Maybe we could set up a base here."

Zhao Yun shook his head, "No Zhang Fei, we do not have enough men to occupy one city, let alone all three of the major cities that are here." Liu Bei nodded, "The state things are in, we have only one option. With Wu being forced to recover we'll have to go to Liu Biao for aid."

So they began their journey, heading for Jing Province. Just then however one of the lookouts called out.

"Dong Zhuo's banners, he is pursuing us!" He yelled, "They are advancing rapidly!"

Almost immediately panic set in, despite Liu Bei's efforts to advance they were soon struck in the rear by the attacking force and scattered throughout Ru Nan.

Hua Xiong, Xu Rong and Niu Fu worked together as they killed off most of the peasant militia and searched for Liu Bei and his officers.

"Remember our lord's orders." Hua Xiong stated, "We are to capture the woman alive, we can kill all the others though."

Just then however they found themselves confronted by one of Liu Bei's officers.

"You miserable fools, you dare attack the innocent!" It was Guan Yu, Hua Xiong growled, "Silence, how dare one as lowly as you talk to me?"

Guan Yu then rode forwards and Hua Xiong rode out to fight him. The duel lasted only ten bouts and Guan Yu killed Hua Xiong with a powerful strike. With Hua Xiong dead his two comrades fled back to their lord. Just then Lu Bu rode up, however at the same time Guan Yu was reinforced by Zhang Fei and together they fought him. Liu Bei had found himself and Xu Shu at the path leading to safety with the rest of the peasant militia and ten of the soldiers.

"We must hold hear, I refuse to leave until the others can reach safety." He declared, the soldiers and peasants agreed and armed themselves, "Lord Liu Bei, we will give our very lives for you!"

So they chose to endure as Guan Yu and Zhang Fei finally beat back Lu Bu and began to flee to the escape point.

Liu Shan meanwhile was being guarded by the soldiers that were not with Liu Bei. However they were being slaughtered by Gao Shun and Dong Min. Liu Shan fought back as best he could and was able to wound Dong Min in the shoulder, but Dong Min's counter attacked threw him to the ground. Just then another figure appeared and attacked the two officers.

"My lord, are you okay?" It was Zhao Yun, Liu Shan nodded, "I'm fine."

He regained his footing and stood up. Together they fought back against their attackers. Meanwhile Xingcai was alone; she had fought through two groups of Dong Zhuo's men, killing them all.

'_Nearly there, not much further then I can get out of here.'_ She thought to herself, _'That's it, I'm gonna make it.'_

However, she was so focused on escaping she hadn't noticed that Li Ru and Li Su were waiting for her and walked into the ambush. She tripped over the rope they pulled across her path, dropping her sword and shield. Before she could recover the soldiers grabbed her and she was soon bound and gagged.

"Now, take her to lord Dong Zhuo, and call off the army, we have achieved victory here." Li Ru stated, "We don't need to waste anymore troops on the rest of them."

So the Dong Zhuo army began to retreat, taking Xingcai with them.

As Dong Min and Gao Shun fled Liu Shan realized what was happened.

"Xingcai, no!" He cried and attempted to pursue, Zhao Yun however blocked his path. "No my lord, you will just get yourself killed, then how can you possibly save her."

"But I can't just leave her!" Liu Shan yelled.

Zhao Yun shook his head, "I'm afraid you don't have a choice…forgive me, my lord."

With that he punched Liu Shan in the stomach, knocking him out. He then picked him up and began to flee. Soon the scattered army reunited and, realizing their peril and their inability to rescue Xingcai they were forced to flee to Jing with they paltry force.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	20. Epilogue

**Dynasty Warriors: Fight for True Love**

Chapter 20 of my Dynasty Warriors story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Phil The Persona Guy: Well, you'll have to wait until the next story to see :) Also Dong Zhuo is only after Liu Shan, it's Cao-Cao who wants Zhang Fei.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors belongs to Koei.

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**Epilogue**

Following the incident at Ru Nan the war halted for a while. Xingcai was imprisoned at the Capital; Luo Yang while Dong Zhuo went to join his main army in preparing to attack Ma Teng in Liang Province, attempting to add it to Si and Yong provinces already under his command. Cao-Cao took command of Yan and Xu and also extended his reach in Yu Province too. Yuan Shao readied his army, which now ruled Ji, Qing and Bing Provinces and prepared to take on Gongsun Zan and Gongsun Kang who ruled You Province. Gongsun Zan was the main opponent while Gongsun Kang wanted nothing to do with war so he was left alone within the city of Liao Dong. The Wu forces returned to Yang Province and Sun Ce took command while his father and Zhou Tai were treated for their injuries and left to recover. Liu Bei was able to form an alliance with Liu Biao who let him stay in the city of Xin Ye, when his scattered followers heard where Liu Bei was they all hurried to return to his side. Liu Biao also swore to stand against the Triple Alliance; however Zhang Lu of Han Zhong and Liu Zhang of Yi Province remained neutral. Although currently in a fragile state of peace, the land was on the brink of all out civil war.

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End of chapter and of story, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


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